BELGIUM
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LAND
30,562 km2 ; 28% cultivated, 24% meadow and pasture, 28% waste, urban, or other; 20% forested
Land boundaries: 1,377 km
WATER
Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 3 nm (fishing 12 nm)
Coastline: 64 km
PEOPLE
Population: 9,881,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 0.1%
Nationality: noun—Belgian(s); adjective—Belgian
Ethnic divisions: 55% Flemings, 33% Walloons, 12% mixed or other
Religion: 97% Roman Catholic, 3% none or other
Language: French, Flemish (Dutch), German, in small area of eastern Belgium; divided along ethnic lines
Literacy: 97%
Labor force: 4.09 million (July 1978); in June 1976, 46.7% in services, 28.0% in mining and manufacturing, 7,4% in construction, 6.6% in transportation, 3.2% in agriculture, 1.0% commuting foreign workers, 0.4% in public works; 10.2% unemployed (January 1982)
Organized labor: 70% of labor force
GOVERNMENT
Official name: Kingdom of Belgium
Type: constitutional monarchy
Capital: Brussels
Political subdivisions: nine provinces; as of 1 October 1980, Wallonia and Flanders have regional "subgovernments" with elected regional councils and executive officials; those regional authorities will have limited powers over revenues and certain areas of economic, urban, environmental, and housing policy; the authority of the regional sub-governments will increase over a five-year period; Wallonia also has a separate Walloon Cultural Council
Legal system: civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; constitution adopted 1831, since amended; judicial review of legislative acts; legal education at four law schools; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
National holiday: National Day, 21 July
Branches: executive branch consists of King and Cabinet; Cabinet responsible to bicameral parliament; independent judiciary; coalition governments are usual
Government leaders: Head of State, King BAUDOUIN I; Prime Minister Wilfried MARTENS
Suffrage: universal over age 18 (as of 1981)
Elections: held 8 November 1981 (held at least once every 4 years)
Political parties and leaders: Flemish Social Christian, Frank Swaelen, president; Francophone Social Christian, Gerard Desprez, president; Flemish Socialist, Karel Van Miert, president; Francophone Socialist, Guy Spitaels, president; Flemish Liberal, Guy Verhofstadt, president; Francophone Liberals, Louis Michel, president; Francophone Democratic Front, Antoinette Spaak, president; Volksunie (Flemish Nationalist), Vic Anciaux, president; Communist, Louis Van Geyt, president; Walloon Rally, Henri Mordant
Voting strength (1981 election): 61 seats Social Christian, 61 seats Socialist, 52 seats Liberal, 20 seats Volksunie, 8 seats Francophone Democratic Front and Walloon Rally, 4 seats Ecologist, 3 seats Anti-Tax Party (UDRT), 2 seats Communist, 1 seat Flemist Extremist Communists: 10,000 members (est., October 1981)
Other political or pressure groups: Christian and Socialist Trade Unions; the Federation of Belgium Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia, various peace groups such as Flemish Action Committee Against Nuclear Weapons
Member of: ADB, Benelux, BLEU, Council of Europe, DAC, EC, ECE, ECOSOC, ECSC, EEC, EIB, ELDO, EMA, ESRO, EURATOM, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAQ ICAO, ICO, ICES, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMCO, IMF, IOOC, IPU, ITC, ITU, NATO, OAS (observer), OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG
ECONOMY
GNP: $118.5 billion (1980), $12,017 per capita; 64.3% consumption, 21.1% investment, 18.7% government consumption, 0.08% stock building,-0.91% net foreign balance (1978); 2% real growth rate in 1980
