Bulgaria

Bulgaria, in southeastern Europe, has long dominated much of the Balkans. It has a population of 7.3 million, and it has a birth rate of 9.6 per 1,000. Its infant mortality rate is 19.8 per 1,000 live births. The crude divorce rate in the country is 1.53 divorces per 1,000 marriages (2003). About 80 percent of Bulgarian women age 25–54 participate in the labor force, and over 67 percent are employed. Women are entitled to 315 days maternity leave.

For years Bulgaria had one of the highest abortion rates in Europe, due in part to availability of abortion on demand. However, abortion rates fell after the introduction of contraception, from a peak of almost 80 per 1,000 fertile women in 1980 to about 50 per 1,000 ...