Bosnia and Herzegovina Facts

by countryaah · Published June 3, 2019 · Updated April 25, 2020

Bosnia and Herzegovina, often referred to as Bosnia only, the state of the Balkan Peninsula in southeastern Europe; 51 130 km², 3.3 million residents (2019).Bosnia and Herzegovina, which borders on Serbia in the east, in the southeast to Montenegro and in the west and north to Croatia, consists of the historical landscapes of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bosnia and Herzegovina was declared an independent state in 1992, and in the same year civil war broke out in the country. The capital is Sarajevo (300 900 residents, 2012).

Bosnia and Herzegovina Flag

Country facts

Republic of Bosnia in Herzegovina / Bosnia and Herzegovina
Country abbreviation: BA
Area: 51 130 km²
Population (2019): 3.3 million residents
Capital: Sarajevo
Main language: Bosnian
State: Republic
Head of State: Rotating (Presidential Council President)
Head of Government: Zoran Tegeltija
Per capita GDP (2018): US $ 5,951
GNI per capita (2018): US $ 5,690
Currency unit: 1 convertible mark = 100 coins
Currency code: BAM
Country number (telephony): 387
Internet domain name: ba
Time difference compared to Sweden: 0
National Day: November 25 (Constitution Day, 1943)
Independence Day: March 1, 1992

Nature

Land use: forest (43%), agricultural land (42%), other (15%)
Highest mountain: Maglić (2,386 m asl)

Population

Population density (2019): 64 residents per km²
Natural population growth (2019): –0.2%; birth rate 9 ‰, death rate 11 ‰
Age structure (2019): 0-14 years (14%), 15-64 (70%), 65- (16%)
Life expectancy (2019): men 74 years, women 79 years
Infant mortality (2019): 6 per 1,000 live births
Population forecast 2050: 3 million residents
HDI (2017): 0.768 (place 77 of 189)
Urbanization rate (2019): 48%
Most populous cities (2012): Sarajevo (300 900 residents), Banja Luka (238 400)

Business

Industry’s contribution to GDP (2017): agriculture (7%), industry (29%), service (64%)
Exports (2017): US $ 5,205 million
Main export goods: metals, clothing, wood products
Main exporting countries: Germany, Croatia, Italy
Imports (2017): US $ 9,547 million
Main import products: machinery, chemicals, fuel
Main importing countries: Germany, Italy, Serbia
Railway network (2014): 965 km

Bosnia and Herzegovina is mountainous, especially in the western parts of the Dinaric Alps. Extensive plateaus lie between the mountain ranges. Only the area west of the Dinar Alps has a Mediterranean climate. The rest of the country has a continental climate.

It is an independent state consisting of two entities based on ethnic criteria: the Bosnian-Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Serbian Republic (Republika Srpska) and the district of Brčko. The constitution of two units means that there is president, parliament and government at both national level and in the two units. The country was declared an independent state in 1992, and the same year a civil war broke out. In 1994, Bosniaks and Croats formed a federation, which was confirmed in 1995 in the Dayton Agreement.

Before the civil war, the country’s economy was dominated by agriculture and some industry, but much of the industrial activity was destroyed during the civil war. The rebuilding of the country’s economy has been slow, but during the 1990s there was some growth in both industry and the service industries. However, growth was slowed by the international financial crisis of 2008–09, and in 2012 the country was forced into an IMF emergency loan of just over EUR 400 million.