Bulgaria

IN 1990, THE Republic of Bulgaria began the transformation from a communist satellite of the Soviet Union to an independent nation. The socialist government was ousted in 1996, setting the stage for democratic elections. Originally, the move toward a market economy brought corruption and crime along with high inflation and unemployment. Subsequent political and economic reforms resulted in Bulgaria's entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 2004 and should eventually allow Bulgaria to join the European Union. Bulgaria's diverse economy is heavily dominated by services, which employ 56.3 percent of the labor force.

Bulgaria's posttransition economy has resulted in steady growth and low inflation; however, an unemployment rate of 12.7 percent, corruption, and a weak judiciary continue to present problems. Bulgaria has one of the the highest poverty rates of any country in Europe. The official figure is 13.4 percent, but unofficial estimates suggest that as many as 45 percent of the population may be poor. Approximately 22 percent of Bulgarians live on less than four dollars a day, and 16 percent of the people are undernourished. Women and children are particularly vulnerable to poverty. Inequality also exists, with the richest 20 percent claiming 38.9 percent of resources and the poorest 20 percent living on 6.7 percent of remaining resources. Bulgaria is ranked 31.9 on the Gini Index of Human Inequality.

The population of 7,450,349 enjoys a projected life span of 72.03 years. The median age is 40.66. Some 14 percent of the population are under the age of 14, and 17.2 percent have lived to see the age of 65. All Bulgarians have access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. The country has 344 physicians for every 100,000 residents, and 80 to 94 percent of Bulgarians have access to affordable essential drugs.

Between 1970 and 2003, Bulgaria's infant mortality rate dropped from 28 to 12 deaths per 1,000 live births. At the same time, the mortality rate of children under the age of 5 fell from 32 to 17 deaths per 1,000. Ten percent of Bulgarian children are underweight at birth. While the childhood immunization rate is high, it continues to be lower than is advisable. Immunization rates [Page 96]for children from birth to 23 months range from the low to the high 90s. Six percent of infants have not been immunized against polio even though two cases of polio were reported in Bulgaria in 2001.

The fertility rate in Bulgaria is low in response to the wide availability of family planning information. About 42 percent of Bulgarian women use birth control of some sort. On the average, women produce 1.38 children each. Teenage mothers give birth at a rate of 49 per 1,000. Maternal mortality is low in Bulgaria, occurring at a rate of 32 deaths per 100,000 births.

Literacy is nearly universal in Bulgaria, and only 1.4 percent of the population over the age of 15 are unable to read and write. Males have a slight advantage over females since only 0.9 percent of males are illiterate while 1.8 percent offemales are so classified. School attendance is compulsory for the first eight years, and most students attend school for 13 years. Some 63 percent of children attend preschool, and completion rates for primary school are at 96.5 percent. Approximately 94 percent of Bulgarians are enrolled in primary schools, but a recent rise in dropouts has been a cause of concern. This rate is particularly high among Roma (32 percent) and Turkish (six percent) children.

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