325 lines
26 KiB
Plaintext
325 lines
26 KiB
Plaintext
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POLAND
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 312,680 km2; land area: 304,510 km2
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Comparative area: slightly smaller than New Mexico
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Land boundaries: 2,980 km total; Czechoslovakia 1,309 km,
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Germany 456 km, USSR 1,215 km
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Coastline: 491 km
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Maritime claims:
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Territorial sea: 12 nm
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Climate: temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters
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with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and
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thundershowers
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Terrain: mostly flat plain, mountains along southern border
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Natural resources: coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver,
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lead, salt
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Land use: arable land 46%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and
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pastures 13%; forest and woodland 28%; other 12%; includes irrigated
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NEGL%
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Environment: plain crossed by a few north-flowing, meandering
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streams; severe air and water pollution in south
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Note: historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain
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and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain
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PEOPLE
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Population: 37,799,638 (July 1991), growth rate 0.1% (1991)
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Birth rate: 14 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: - 4 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 12 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 69 years male, 77 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 2.1 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Pole(s); adjective--Polish
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Ethnic divisions: Polish 97.6%, German 1.3%, Ukrainian 0.6%,
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Belorussian (Byelorussian) 0.5% (1990 est.)
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Religion: Roman Catholic 95% (about 75% practicing),
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Russian Orthodox, Protestant, and other 5%
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Language: Polish
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Literacy: 98% (male 99%, female 98%) age 15 and over can
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read and write (1978)
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Labor force: 17,104,000; industry and construction 36.1%;
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agriculture 27.3%; trade, transport, and communications 14.8%; government
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and other 21.8% (1989)
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Organized labor: trade union pluralism
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: Republic of Poland
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Type: democratic state
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Capital: Warsaw
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Administrative divisions: 49 provinces (wojewodztwa,
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singular--wojewodztwo); Biala Podlaska, Bialystok, Bielsko,
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Bydgoszcz, Chelm, Ciechanow, Czestochowa, Elblag, Gdansk,
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Gorzow, Jelenia Gora, Kalisz, Katowice, Kielce, Konin, Koszalin,
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Krakow, Krosno, Legnica, Leszno, Lodz, Lomza, Lublin,
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Nowy Sacz, Olsztyn, Opole, Ostroleka, Pila, Piotrkow,
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Plock, Poznan, Przemysl, Radom, Rzeszow, Siedlce, Sieradz,
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Skierniewice, Slupsk, Suwalki, Szczecin, Tarnobrzeg, Tarnow,
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Torun, Walbrzych, Warszawa, Wloclawek, Wroclaw, Zamosc,
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Zielona Gora
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Independence: 11 November 1918, independent republic proclaimed
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Constitution: the Communist-imposed Constitution of 22 July 1952
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will probably be replaced by a democratic Constitution in 1992
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Legal system: mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and
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Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not
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accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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National holiday: Constitution Day, 3 May (1794)
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Executive branch: president, prime minister, Council of Ministers
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(cabinet)
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Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly (Zgromadzenie
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Narodowe) consists of an upper house or Senate (Senat) and a lower house
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or Diet (Sejm)
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--President Lech WALESA (since 22 December
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1990);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister Jan Krzysztof BIELECKI (since
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4 January 1991)
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Political parties and leaders:
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center-right agrarian parties--Polish Peasant Party (PSL), Roman
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BARTOSZCZE, chairman;
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Polish Peasant Party-Solidarity, Gabriel JANOWSKI, chairman;
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other center-right parties--Center Alliance, Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI,
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chairman;
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Christian National Union, Wieslaw CHRZANOWSKI, chairman;
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Christian Democratic Labor Party, Wladyslaw SILA-NOWICKI, chairman;
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Democratic Party, Jerzy JOZWIAK, chairman;
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center-left parties--Polish Socialist Party, Jan Jozef LIPSKI,
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chairman;
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Democratic Union, Tadeusz MAZOWIECKI, chairman;
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ROAD, Wladyslaw FRASYNIUK and Zbigniew BUJAK, chairmen;
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left-wing parties--Polish Socialist Party-Democratic Revolution,
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Piotr IKONOWICZ;
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other--Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland (formerly the
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Communist party or Polish United Workers' Party/PZPR), Aleksander
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KWASNIEWSKI, chairman;
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Union of the Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland (breakaway
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faction of the PZPR), Tadeusz FISZBACH, chairman
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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President--first round held 25 November 1990, second round
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held 9 December 1990 (next to be held November 1995);
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results--second round Lech WALESA 74.7%, Stanislaw TYMINSKI 25.3%;
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Senate--last held 4 and 18 June 1989 (next to be held late
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1991);
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results--percent of vote by party NA;
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seats--(100 total) Solidarity 99, independent 1;
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Diet--last held 4 and 18 June 1989 (next to be held late 1991);
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results--percent of vote by party NA;
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seats--(460 total) Communists 173, Solidarity 161, Polish Peasant
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Party 76, Democratic Party 27, Christian National Union 23; note--rules
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governing the election limited Solidarity's share of the vote to 35%
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of the seats; future elections, which will probably be held before
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late 1991, are to be freely contested
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Communists: 70,000 members in the Communist successor parties
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(1990)
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Other political or pressure groups: powerful Roman Catholic Church;
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Confederation for an Independent Poland (KPN), a nationalist group;
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Solidarity (trade union); All Poland Trade Union Alliance (OPZZ),
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populist program; Clubs of Catholic Intellectuals (KIKs); Freedom and
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Peace (WiP), a pacifist group; Independent Student Union (NZS)
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Member of: BIS, CCC, CERN (observer, but scheduled to become
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a member l July 1991), CSCE, ECE, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBEC, IBRD, ICAO,
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ICFTU, IDA, IIB, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, PCA, UN,
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UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNDOF, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
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WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Kazimierz DZIEWANOWSKI;
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Chancery at 2640 16th Street NW, Washington DC 20009;
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telephone (202) 234-3800 through 3802; there are Polish Consulates
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General in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York;
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US--Ambassador Thomas W. SIMONS, Jr.; Embassy at Aleje
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Ujazdowskie 29/31, Warsaw (mailing address is American Embassy Warsaw,
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c/o American Consulate General (WAW) or APO New York 09213-5010);
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telephone 48 (22) 283041 through 283049; there is a US Consulate
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General in Krakow and a Consulate in Poznan
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Flag: two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red--a crowned
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eagle is to be added; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which
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are red (top) and white
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ECONOMY
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Overview: The economy, except for the agricultural sector, had
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followed the Soviet model of state ownership and control of
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productive assets. About 75% of agricultural production had come from the
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private sector and the rest from state farms. The economy has presented a
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picture of moderate but slowing growth against a background of underlying
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weaknesses in technology and worker motivation. GNP dropped by 2.0% in
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1989 and by a further 8.9% in 1990. The inflation rate, after falling
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sharply from the 1982 peak of 100% to 22% in 1986, rose to a galloping
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rate of 640% in 1989 and dropped back to 250% in 1990. Shortages of
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consumer goods and some food items worsened in 1988-89. Agricultural
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products and coal are among the biggest hard currency earners, but
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manufactures are increasing in importance. Poland, with its hard currency
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debt of $48.5 billion, is severely limited in its ability to import
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much-needed hard currency goods. The sweeping political changes of 1989
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disrupted normal economic channels and exacerbated shortages. In January
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1990, the new Solidarity-led government adopted a cold turkey program for
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transforming Poland to a market economy. The government moved to
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eliminate subsidies, free prices, make the zloty convertible, and,
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in general, halt the hyperinflation. These financial measures were
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accompanied by plans to privatize the economy in stages. While inflation
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fell to an annual rate of 77.5% by November of 1990, the rise in
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unemployment and the drop in living standards have led to growing popular
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discontent and to a change of government in January 1991. The new
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government is continuing the previous government's economic
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program, while trying to speed privatization and to better cushion the
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populace from the dislocations associated with reform. Substantial
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outside aid will be needed if Poland is to make a successful transition
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in the 1990s.
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GNP: $158.5 billion, per capita $4,200; real growth rate - 8.9%
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(1990 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 250% (1990 est.)
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Unemployment rate: 6.1% (end-December 1990)
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Budget: revenues $20.9 billion; expenditures $23.4 billion,
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including capital expenditures of $2.8 billion (1989)
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Exports: $12.9 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
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commodities--machinery and equipment 38%; fuels, minerals, and
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metals 21%; manufactured consumer goods 15%; agricultural and forestry
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products 4% (1989);
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partners--USSR 25%, FRG 14%, UK 6.5%, Czechoslovakia 5.5% (1989)
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Imports: $12.8 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
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commodities--machinery and equipment 37%; fuels, minerals, and
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metals 31%; manufactured consumer goods 17%; agricultural and forestry
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products 5% (1989);
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partners--USSR 18%, FRG 16%, Austria 6%, Czechoslovakia 6% (1989)
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External debt: $48.5 billion (January 1991)
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Industrial production: growth rate - 23% (State sector 1990 est.)
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Electricity: 31,530,000 kW capacity; 136,300 million kWh produced,
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3,610 kWh per capita (1990)
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Industries: machine building, iron and steel, extractive
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industries, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages,
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textiles
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Agriculture: accounts for 15% of GNP and 27% of labor force; 75% of
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output from private farms, 25% from state farms; productivity remains
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low by European standards; leading European producer of rye, rapeseed,
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and potatoes; wide variety of other crops and livestock; major exporter
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of pork products; normally self-sufficient in food
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Economic aid: donor--bilateral aid to non-Communist less developed
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countries, $2.2 billion (1954-89)
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Currency: zloty (plural--zlotych); 1 zloty (Zl) =
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100 groszy
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Exchange rates: zlotych (Zl) per US$1--11,100.00 (May 1991),
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9,500 (1990), 1,439.18 (1989), 430.55 (1988), 265.08 (1987), 175.29
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(1986), 147.14 (1985)
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Fiscal year: calendar year
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 27,041 km total; 24,287 km 1.435-meter standard gauge,
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397 km 1.520-meter broad gauge, 2,357 km narrow gauge; 8,987 km double
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track; 11,016 km electrified; government owned (1989)
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Highways: 299,887 km total; 130,000 km improved hard surface
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(concrete, asphalt, stone block); 24,000 km unimproved hard surface
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(crushed stone, gravel); 100,000 km earth; 45,887 km other urban roads
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(1985)
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Inland waterways: 3,997 km navigable rivers and canals (1989)
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Pipelines: 4,500 km for natural gas; 1,986 km for crude oil;
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360 km for refined products (1987)
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Ports: Gdansk, Gdynia, Szczecin, Swinoujscie; principal
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inland ports are Gliwice on Kanal Gliwice, Wroclaw on the Oder, and
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Warsaw on the Vistula
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Merchant marine: 235 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,957,600
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GRT/4,163,820 DWT; includes 5 short-sea passenger, 92 cargo, 3
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refrigerated cargo, 12 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 9 container, 3 petroleum,
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oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 4 chemical tanker, 107 bulk; Poland
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owns 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) of 6,333 DWT operating under Liberian
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registry
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Civil air: 48 major transport aircraft
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Airports: 160 total, 160 usable; 85 with permanent-surface runways;
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1 with runway over 3,659 m; 35 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 65 with
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runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: phone density is 10.5 phones per 100 residents
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(October 1990); 3.1 million subscribers; exchanges are 86% automatic
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(February 1990); stations--29 AM, 29 FM, 37 (5 Soviet relays) TV;
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9.6 million TVs
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: External Front Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense
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Forces, Internal Defense Forces (WOW), Territorial Defense Forces (JOT),
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Border Guards (WOP), Paramilitary Forces, Civil Defense (OC)
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 9,571,708; 7,543,565 fit for
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military service; 302,000 reach military age (19) annually
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Defense expenditures: 22.3 trillion zlotych, NA% of GDP (1991);
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note--conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the
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official administratively set exchange rate would produce misleading
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results
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