About Ukraine

Ukraine – is a country of Central-East Europe. The territory of Ukraine is equal to 603,7 th sq km or 5,7% of European territory. It occupies the territory of Southern West part of East-European Plain, part of the Carpathians and the Crimea Mountains. The territory from North to South is 893 km, from West to East - 1316 km. Ukraine lies within moderate latitudes and has ports on the Black sea and the Azov sea. Geoposition between Eastern and Western peoples and cultures made a great impact on the history and now-a-day development of Ukraine. Ukraine has inland and marine borders of 7590 km. The inland border passes for 5631 km and consists of 3 areas: Western, Eastern and Northern. The length of marine border is 1959 km. Ukraine borders on Russian Federation (inland border of 2063 km), Republic of Belarus (975 km), Republic of Poland (542,5 km), Republic of Slovakia (98 km), Hungary (135 km), Romania (608 km) and Republic of Moldova (1194 km).

Natural scenery of Ukraine is picturesque. Recreational landscapes occupy an area of 9.4 mln hectares (one hectare is about 2.5 acres). Forests cover about 14% of Ukraine’s territory. The longest mountain range in Ukraine is the Carpathians stretching for 270 km; the highest mountain is the Hoverla (2061 m). The Crimean Mountains are situated in the southern part of the Crimea, the southernmost extension of Ukraine (the highest mountain is 1545 m). Over 70,000 rivers flow through Ukraine. The major rivers are the Dnipro (third longest in Europe), the Dniester, Southern Buh, Siverskiy Donets, Prut, the mouth of the Danube is situated in Ukraine. There are over 3000 natural lakes and about 22,000 artificial water reservoirs in Ukraine, as well as many sources of mineral water and medicinal mud which are used to treat many diseases.

Climate

Ukraine’s climate, is moderately continental; at the southern coast of the Crimea it can be described as subtropical of the Mediterranean type. Summers are mostly warm and dry and winters are usually mild and west. The average temperature in January is -7 Centigrade and in July +19 Centigrade.

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Population

The population of Ukraine is 49,5 mln people. Ukraine is the 5th in Europe (after Germany, Italy, Great Britain, France) and the 21st in the World. Ukrainian population sets 7,3% of population of Europe and 1% of the World population. 68% of Ukrainians live in cities and 32% - in rural areas.

The average density of population of Ukraine is 85 people per square kilometer. As per this indicator, Ukraine yields to many European countries. The density is not similar all over Ukraine. The most habitable is Donetsk’s region - 196 people per sq km. The less one – Chernigov (in Ukrainian - "Chernihiv") region – people per sq km.

Religion

Most of the believers in Ukraine are Christians of several denominations: Orthodox (of two kinds), Greco-Catholic (of Ukrainian Catholic Rite and Byzantine Rite); Roman Catholics; and Protestants. There are also Judaists, Muslims (mostly among the Crimean Tatars) and representatives of other confessions in Ukraine.

Administrative structure

Administratively Ukraine is divided into 24 Oblasts and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. There are 447 towns and 28,800 villages in Ukraine. Kiev (in Ukrainian - "Kyiv"), the biggest city in Ukraine and capital of Ukraine, has a population of 2.6 mln; Kharkov (in Ukrainian -"Kharkiv"), Dnepropetrovsk (in Ukrainian - "Dnipropetrivsk"), Zaporozhye (in Ukrainian - "Zaporizhia"), Donetsk and Odessa all have a population of over one million.

Economy

Ukraine is an industrial and agricultural country with developed scientific and productive basis. It is rich in natural resources: coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, and uranium, to name just a few. Among better developed industries are metallurgy, mining, power and fuel, machine-building, food, and textile. Ukrainian industrial potential includes machine production, ferrous and non–ferrous metallurgy, bus production, light and cargo vehicles production, tractors and other agrarian techniques production, production of diesel locomotives, lathes, equipment for Electric Power Plants, turbines, aviation engines and aircrafts, equipment for oil refinery and chemistry plants. Ukraine is a powerful energy producer.

In most parts of Ukraine soil is suitable for growing grain, potatoes, sugar beets, corn and other crops. The area of the cropland in Ukraine is 32 mln hectares. Ukraine has big sea ports on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov coasts which handle a considerable amount of trade with foreign countries.

For more information, please see www.worldbank.org.ua