Language: Serbian 95%, Albanian 5%

Capital: Belgrade

Population: 10,662,087 (Serbia – 9,981,929; Montenegro – 680,158)
— note: All data dealing with population is subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by military action and ethnic cleansing (July 2000 est.)
Ethnic groups by 1991 estimate: Serb 62.6%, Albanian 16.5%, Montenegrin 5%, Yugoslav 3.4%, Hungarian 3.3%, other 9.2%

Area: 102,350 sq km

Natural Features: SW: Adriatic Sea; N: fertile plains; E: limestone ranges & basins; SE: mts.

President: Currently, there is no President in Serbia and Montenegro.

Type of Government: President elected by Parliament for 4-year term; election last held March 2003; Prime minister appointed by the president; Universal suffrage at 18 – 16 if employed

Religion: Eastern Orthodox 65%, Muslim 19%, Roman Catholic 4%, Protestant 1%, other 11%

Currency: Euro and the Yugoslav dinar

Economy: Milosevic-era mismanagement of the economy, an extended period of economic sanctions, and the damage to Yugoslavia’s infrastructure and industry during the war in Kosovo have left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. Severe unemployment is a key political economic problem. The complexity of Serbia and Montenegro political relationships and slow progress in privatization have held back the economy.

Since the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President Milosevic in October 2000, the coalition government has implemented stabilization measures and embarked on an aggressive market reform program. A World Bank-European Commission sponsored Donors’ Conference held in June 2001 raised $1.3 billion for economic restructuring.

The smaller republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the Milosevic era and continues to maintain its own central bank, uses the euro instead of the Yugoslav dinar as official currency, collects customs tariffs, and manages its own budget.

Kosovo, while technically still part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now Serbia and Montenegro), is dependent on the international community for financial and technical assistance.

Life Expectancy: total population: Serbia – 72.39 years; Montenegro – 75.46 years

Infant Mortality Rate: Serbia – 20.13 deaths/1,000 live births; Montenegro – 10.97 deaths/1,000 live births

Education: Literacy (female):88.9%; Literacy (male):97.2%; School life expectancy:10.5 years

Food: homemade sausages and ham; borek (a meat and cheese-filled pastry), often eaten with liquid yogurt; ham and bean soup; paprika; pickles; palacinka (crepe filled with jam or cocoa)

History: Serbia and Montenegro is a loose commonwealth that formed after the break-up of the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the 90’s. Yugoslavia was formed after WWI in 1918 from the Croatian, Serbian, and Slovenian territories. It became known under this name in 1929.

Upon forming in 1992, the United Nations and many individual states (especially the United States) refused to recognise the remaining confederation of Serbia and Montenegro as the continuation of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, although they accepted it as constituting a state. These two states came to an agreement only to cooperate in some political fields (e.g. a defence union). The states have their own economic policies and currencies. Serbia and Montenegro does not have a complete capital any more. Though most institutions are in Belgrade, some have been moved to Podgorica.

The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was finally admitted to the United Nations in 2000, the year that the former Yugoslav President Milosevic was ousted from power. In 2002, Serbia and Montenegro came to a new agreement regarding continued cooperation, which, among other changes, promised the end of the name Yugoslavia. In February 2003, the federal parliament of Yugoslavia created a loose commonwealth of Serbia and Montenegro called Serbia and Montenegro. A new constitution was accepted in February of the same year and in three years time each of the two states may seek full independence via a referendum.