Albannie

ALBANIA
Officially known as the Republic of Albania, is a country in Southeast Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast, the Republic ofMacedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the west, and on the Ionian Sea to the southwest.
Administrative divisions
Albania is divided into12 administrative counties. These counties include 36 districts and 373 municipalities, 72 municipalities have city status. There are overall 2980 villages in all Albania. Each district has itscouncil which is composed of a number of municipalities. The municipalities are the first level of local governance, responsible for local needs and law enforcement.
Government, politics and armed forcesThe Albanian republic is a parliamentary democracy established under a constitution renewed in 1998. Elections are held every four years to a unicameral 140-seat chamber.
The head of state inAlbania is the President of the Republic. The President is elected to a 5-year term by the Assembly of the Republic of Albania by secret ballot, requiring a 50%+1 majority of the votes of all deputies. Thenext election will run in 2012. The current President of the Republic is Bamir Topi.
Economy
The country has some deposits of petroleum and natural gas, but produced only 5,400 barrels of oil perday as of 2009. Natural gas production, estimated at about 30 million cubic meters, is sufficient to meet consumer demands. Other natural resources include coal, bauxite, copper and iron ore.Agriculture is the most significant sector, employing some 58% of the labor force and generating about 21% of GDP. Albania produces significant amounts of wheat, corn, tobacco, figs and olives.
Language
Thedominant and official language is Albanian, a revised and merged form of the two main dialects, Gheg and Tosk, but with a bigger influence of Tosk as compared to the Gheg. The Shkumbin River is the...