HUNGARY
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HUNGARY
@Hungary:Geography
Location: Central Europe, northwest of Romania
Map references: Ethnic Groups in Eastern Europe, Europe
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HUNGARY - MAJOR CITIES
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Latitude, Internat'l Time
Population Longitude Phone Code Zone
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BUDAPEST 2,115,000 47.30N, 19.03E 36-1 GMT+1
Debrecen 220,000 47.30N, 21.37E 36-52 GMT+1
Miskolc 208,000 48.07N, 20.47E 36-46 GMT+1
Szeged 189,000 46.15N, 20.09E 36-62 GMT+1
P‚cs 183,000 46.04N, 18.15E 36-72 GMT+1
Gy”r 132,000 47.41N, 17.40E 36-96 GMT+1
Nyˇregyh za 119,000 47.57N, 21.43E 36-42 GMT+1
Szekesfeh‚rv r 114,000 47.11N, 18.22E 36-22 GMT+1
Kecskem‚t 106,000 46.56N, 19.43E 36-76 GMT+1
Szombathely 87,000 47.14N, 16.38E 36-94 GMT+1
Szolnok 81,000 47.10N, 20.10E 36-56 GMT+1
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Area:
total area: 93,030 sq km
land area: 92,340 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Indiana
Land boundaries: total 1,989 km, Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km,
Romania 443 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km (all with Serbia),
Slovakia 515 km, Slovenia 82 km, Ukraine 103 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none; landlocked
International disputes: Gabcikovo Dam dispute with Slovakia
Climate: temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers
Terrain: mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the
Slovakian border
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils
Land use:
arable land: 50.7%
permanent crops: 6.1%
meadows and pastures: 12.6%
forest and woodland: 18.3%
other: 12.3%
Irrigated land: 1,750 sq km (1989)
Environment:
current issues: air pollution; industrial and municipal pollution of
Lake Balaton
natural hazards: levees are common along many streams, but flooding
occurs almost every year
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, 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, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic
Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea
Note: landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between
Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and
Mediterranean basin
@Hungary:People
Population: 10,318,838 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 18% (female 918,281; male 958,027)
15-64 years: 68% (female 3,534,218; male 3,440,036)
65 years and over: 14% (female 914,221; male 554,055) (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.02% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 12.65 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 12.44 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 11.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.9 years
male: 67.94 years
female: 76.06 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.82 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Hungarian(s)
adjective: Hungarian
Ethnic divisions: 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: age 15 and over can read and write (1980)
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 98%
Labor force: 5.4 million
by occupation: services, trade, government, and other 44.8%, industry
29.7%, agriculture 16.1%, construction 7.0% (1991)
@Hungary:Government
Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Hungary
conventional short form: Hungary
local long form: Magyar Koztarsasag
local short form: Magyarorszag
Digraph: HU
Type: republic
Capital: Budapest
Administrative divisions: 38 counties (megyek, singular - megye) 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, Zala,
Zalaegerszeg
Independence: 1001 (unification by King Stephen I)
National holiday: St. Stephen's Day (National Day), 20 August
(commemorates the founding of Hungarian state circa 1000 A.D.)
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
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: President Arpad GONCZ (since 3 August 1990; previously
interim president from 2 May 1990); election last held 3 August 1990
(next to be held NA 1995); results - President GONCZ elected by
parliamentary vote; note - President GONCZ was elected by the National
Assembly with a total of 295 votes out of 304 as interim President
from 2 May 1990 until elected President
head of government: Prime Minister Gyula HORN (since 15 July 1994)
cabinet: Council of Ministers; elected by the National Assembly on
recommendation of the president
Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly (Orszaggyules): elections last held on 8 and 29 May
1994 (next to be held spring 1998); results - percent of vote by party
NA; seats - (386 total) MSzP 209, SzDSz 70, MDF 37, FKgP 26, KDNP 22,
FiDeSz 20, other 2
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court
Political parties and leaders: Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF), Lajos
FUR, chairman; Independent Smallholders (FKgP), Jozsef TORGYAN,
president; Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP), Gyula HORN, president;
Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP), Dr. Lazlo SURJAN,
president; Federation of Young Democrats (FiDeSz), Viktor ORBAN,
chairman; Alliance of Free Democrats (SzDSz), Ivan PETO, chairman
note: the Hungarian Socialist (Communist) Workers' Party (MSzMP)
renounced Communism and became the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP) in
October 1989; there is still a small MMP
Member of: Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EBRD, ECE, FAO,
G- 9, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NSG,
OAS (observer), OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOMIG, UNOMOZ, UNOMUR, UNU, UPU, WEU (associate
partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Gyorgy BANLAKI (since 27 October 1994)
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
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Donald M. BLINKEN
embassy: V. Szabadsag Ter 12, Budapest
mailing address: Am Embassy, Unit 1320, Budapest; APO AE 09213-1320
telephone: [36] (1) 112-6450
FAX: [36] (1) 132-8934
Flag: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green
Economy
Overview: Since 1989 Hungary has been a leader in the transition from
a socialist command economy to a market economy - thanks in large part
to its initial economic reforms during the Communist era. The private
sector now accounts for about 55% of GDP. Nonetheless, the
transformation is proving difficult, and many citizens say life was
better under the old system. On the bright side, the four-year decline
in output finally ended in 1994, as real GDP increased an estimated
3%. This growth helped reduce unemployment to just over 10% by
yearend, down from a peak of 13%. However, no progress was made
against inflation, which remained stuck at about 20%, and the
already-large current account deficit in the balance of payments
actually got worse, reaching almost $4 billion. Underlying Hungary's
other economic problems is the large budget deficit, which probably
exceeded 7% of GDP in 1994, despite some late-year budget cutting by
the new leftist government. In 1995 the government has pledged to
accelerate privatization and lower the budget deficit to 5.5% of GDP.
It believes this fiscal tightening will reduce the current account
deficit to $2.5 billion but at the cost of holding economic growth to
only 1%.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $58.8 billion (1994
est.)
National product real growth rate: 3% (1994 est.)
National product per capita: $5,700 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 21% (1994)
Unemployment rate: 10.4% (yearend 1994)
Budget:
revenues: $11.3 billion
expenditures: $14.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1994)
Exports: $10.3 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: raw materials and semi-finished goods 30.0%, machinery
and transport equipment 20.1%, consumer goods 25.2%, food and
agriculture 21.4%, fuels and energy 3.4% (1993)
partners: Germany 25.3%, Italy 8.3%, Austria 10.5%, the FSU 14.0%, US
4.3% (1993)
Imports: $14.2 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: fuels and energy 12.6%, raw materials and semi-finished
goods 27.3%, machinery and transport equipment 33.0%, consumer goods
21.2%, food and agriculture 5.9% (1993)
partners: Germany 21.5%, Italy 6.1%, Austria 11.8%, the FSU 20.9%, US
4.3% (1993); note - about one-fourth of the imports from the FSU were
MiGs delivered as a debt payment
External debt: $27 billion (September 1994)
Industrial production: growth rate 7% (1994 est.)
Electricity:
capacity: 6,740,000 kW
production: 31 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 3,012 kWh (1993)
Industries: mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed
foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), buses,
automobiles
Agriculture: including forestry, accounts for 15% of GDP and 16% of
employment; highly diversified crop and livestock farming; principal
crops - wheat, corn, sunflowers, potatoes, sugar beets; livestock -
hogs, cattle, poultry, dairy products; self-sufficient in food output
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southeast Asia heroin and South
American cocaine destined for Western Europe; limited producer of
precursor chemicals
Economic aid:
recipient: assistance pledged by OECD countries since 1989 about $9
billion
Currency: 1 forint (Ft) = 100 filler
Exchange rates: forints per US$1 - 112 (January 1995), 105.16 (1994),
91.93 (1993), 78.99 (1992), 74.74 (1991), 63.21 (1990), 59.07 (1989)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Hungary:Transportation
Railroads:
total: 7,785 km
broad gauge: 35 km 1.520-m gauge
standard gauge: 7,574 km 1.435-m gauge (2,277 km electrified; 1,236 km
double track)
narrow gauge: 176 km mostly 0.760-m gauge (1994)
Highways:
total: 158,711 km
paved: 69,992 km (441 km expressways)
unpaved: 88,719 km (1992)
Inland waterways: 1,622 km (1988)
Pipelines: crude oil 1,204 km; natural gas 4,387 km (1991)
Ports: Budapest, Dunaujvaros
Merchant marine:
total: 10 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 46,121 GRT/61,613
DWT
Airports:
total: 78
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 2
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
with paved runways under 914 m: 1
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 9
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 14
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 34
@Hungary:Communications
Telephone system: 1,520,000 phones; 14.7 telephones/100 inhabitants
(1993); 14,213 telex lines; automatic telephone network based on
microwave radio relay system; 608,000 telephones on order; 12-15 year
wait for a telephone; 49% of all phones are in Budapest (1991)
local: NA
intercity: microwave radio relay
international: 1 INTELSAT and Intersputnik earth stations
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 32, FM 15, shortwave 0
radios: NA
Television:
broadcast stations: 41 (Russian repeaters 8)
televisions: NA
@Hungary:Defense Forces
Branches: Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guard,
Territorial Defense
Manpower availability: males age 15-49 2,639,860; males fit for
military service 2,105,632; males reach military age (18) annually
86,298 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures: 66.5 billion forints, NA% of GDP (1994 est.);
note - conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the
prevailing exchange rate could produce misleading results
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