e Conservation, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Law of
the Sea

Geography - note: crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West
European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels which is the seat of
both the EU and NATO

@Belgium:People

Population: 10,165,059 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 17% (male 911,881; female 868,361)
15-64 years: 66% (male 3,385,319; female 3,318,940)
65 years and over : 17% (male 681,432; female 999,126) (July 1997
est.)

Population growth rate: 0.11% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 10.43 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 10.41 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate: 1.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 6.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.19 years
male : 73.95 years
female: 80.59 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.5 children born/woman (1997 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian

Ethnic groups: Fleming 55%, Walloon 33%, mixed or other 12%

Religions: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%

Languages: Flemish 56%, French 32%, German 1%, legally bilingual 11%

Literacy:
definition : age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1980 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%

@Belgium:Government

Country name:
conventional long form : Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium
local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie
local short form: Belgique/Belgie

Data code: BE

Government type: federal parliamentary democracy under a
constitutional monarch

National capital: Brussels

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces (French: provinces, singular -
province; Flemish: provincien, singular - provincie); Antwerpen,
Brabant, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen,
West-Vlaanderen
note: constitutional reforms passed by Parliament in 1993
theoretically increased the number of provinces to 10 by splitting the
province of Brabant into two new provinces, Flemish Brabant and
Walloon Bra