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Belgium

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Last reviewed: 15 April 2009

Country information

BELGIUM TODAY

Country Facts

Area: 30,520 sq km (Total: 30,510 sq km; land: 30,230 sq km; water: 280 sq km)
Population: 10,258,762
Capital City: Brussels (population: 970,000)
People:
0-14 years: 16.5% (M 873,130; F 836,785)
15-64 years: 66.1% (M 3,467,044; F 3,406,030)
65 years and over: 17.4% (M 746,969; F 1,062,268) (2007 est.)
Languages: Dutch 58%, French 32%, German 10%
Religions: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or Other 25%
Currency: Euro

Major political parties:
Dutch Speaking parties:  CD&V (Flemish Christian Democrats); NVA (Flemish Nationalists); Open-VLD (Flemish Liberals and Democrats);  sp.a/ (Flemish Socialists); Lijst Dedecker (right of centre); Vlaams Belang (far-right Flemish Nationalists); Groen! (Greens)

Francophone Parties: MR (Liberals); PS (Socialist); CDH (Humanist Centre Democrats); Ecolo (Greens); Front National (far-right).

More information: Belgium Government website

Government: Federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch.
Head of State: King Albert II (since 9 August 1993) Heir Apparent: Prince Phillipe
Prime Minister: Herman Van Rompuy
Foreign Minister: Karel de Gucht
Parties forming the current Federal government: Open-VLD, CD&V, MR, PS, CDH.

Membership of international organisations: Benelux; Bank for International Settlements (BIS); European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN); Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC); European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD); European Union (EU); International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU); International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (ICRM); Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW); North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO); United Nations (UN); United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO); United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK); World Health Organisation (WHO); World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO); World Meteorological Organisation (WMO); World Trade Organisation (WTO). Brussels is also home to many of the EU institutions and NATO HQ.

DID YOU KNOW?

  • Naming 5 famous Belgians: tennis stars Kim Clijsters and Justin Henin, inventor of the saxophone Adolph Sax; artist Rene Magritte, 5-times Tour de France winner Eddy Merckx. And that's before mentioning Tintin, Poirot and the Smurfs!
  • There are over 400 beers brewed in Belgium, ranging from lagers and pilsners through lambic, white and fruit beers, to Trappist monastery beers. Famous names include Stella Artois, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Duvel and Chimay.
  • Belgium has dozens of carnivals during the year, including those in Binche and Stavelot in which local people dress in various traditional costumes and parade through the streets, and the CAT Festival in Ieper.

ECONOMY

Basic Economic Facts

Nominal GDP: €311.53 bn in 2006
GDP per capita: €30,017 (2006)
Real GDP Growth: 1.1% (2008); -2.5% (forecast 2009)
Public debt: 88.7% (2008); 94.8% (forecast 2009)
Inflation: 4.5% (2008); 0.5% (forecast 2009)
Unemployment rate: 7.1% (2008); 8.8% (forecast 2009)

More information: National Bank of Belgium

Major Industries: basic metals, chemicals, fabricated metal products, motor vehicle assembly, processed food and beverages.

HISTORY

Belgium suffered greatly during the First World War, despite its neutrality dating back to its creation in 1830, and from the international economic problems in the years immediately afterwards. It was invaded again by German forces in May 1940. King Leopold III ordered the armed forces to cease resistance after 18 days, causing tension between the monarchy and the government (the latter withdrew into exile in London). Following Belgium’s liberation, Leopold III, under intense pressure from public and political opinion, decided to abdicate in favour of his son Baudouin I, who remained on the throne until his death in July 1993. King Baudouin’s brother Albert II, the sixth King of the Belgians, succeeded him.

Belgium was one of the 6 founding members of the EU. Europe remains popular. Internally, 5 rounds of reforms since 1970 have transformed Belgium into a federal state, with significant power transferred to the regions and language communities.

More information: Belgium Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Longer Historical Perspective

Caesar called the Belgae the bravest of all the peoples of Gaul. But Belgium only became an independent country in 1830. Before that it was ruled by other powers, including the Austrians, the Spanish, the French and the Dutch. The roots of the linguistic boundary in Belgium, which runs east-west just to the south of Brussels, go back to the Germanic invasions of the third to fifth centuries.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Relations with Neighbours

Belgium plays an active role in a number of international organisations, including the EU, the UN and NATO. Belgium has been elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2007-2009. As a former colonial power, Belgium also maintains close links to Central Africa, especially the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi, although in 2008 there was disruption in diplomatic relations with the DRC after some statements of the Belgian Foreign Minister De Gucht.  Relations have now been restored.

Belgium's policy on Europe

Relations with the International Community

Belgium plays an active role in a number of international organisations, including the EU, the UN and NATO. Belgium has been elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2007-2009. As a former colonial power, Belgium also maintains close links to Central Africa, especially the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi.

Belgian Foreign Ministry's website on international cooperation

Relations with the UK

Close links with the UK go back to trade with England in wool and cloth in the tenth century. Belgian neutrality was confirmed by the Treaty of London in 1839. During the Second World War, the Belgian Government in exile was based in London. During the 2 World Wars over 250,000 Commonwealth soldiers died in Belgium. As fellow members of the EU, the UK and Belgium enjoy good relations. There are approximately 50,000 British citizens living in Belgium, and a similar number of Belgians living in the UK.

The Belgo-British Conference is an annual event held alternately in the UK and Belgium. Formerly organised by the British Council and now by the 'four partners' i.e. the Belgian Foreign Affairs Ministry, Egmont, the British Embassy and the British Council, it brings together politicians, academics and professionals for high-level discussions on key issues affecting Belgium, the UK and Europe. The first was held in Bruges in October 2000 followed by London, Brussels, Edinburgh and Namur, London and Brussels. The 2007 conference  was held in London on 14-15 November 2007.  The 2008 conference was held in Brussels, November 12-13 on the theme of Natural Resources: Challenges and opportunities. (http://ukinbelgium.fco.gov.uk/en/working-with-belgium/belgo-british-conference)

Other UK representations in Belgium:
- the UK Permanent representation to the EU
- the UK Delegation to Nato
- the UK Permanent Representation to the WEU.

Cultural Relations with the UK

British Council: Belgium

Recent Visits

Inward

2008 - Defence Minister De Crem attended Cenotaph Ceremony in London.
2007 - November: Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht met with the Foreign Secretary David Miliband, Lord Malloch-Brown before attending the Belgo/British Conference with Dr Kim Howells.

Outward

2008 - Caroline Flint attended Belgo British Conference in Brussels
2008 - February: The Prime Minister held talks with Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt in Brussels.
2007 - November: The Foreign Secretary gave the commencement address to the College of Europe in Bruges
2007 - August 2007: The Advocate General for Scotland, Lord Davidson of Glen Clova and Scottish Executive Minister for Europe Linda Fabiani dedicated a memorial to the Scots who died during the First World War in Flanders.
2007 - July: HRH The Queen and HRH the Duke of Edinburgh visited Belgium. This visit included engagements at the GSK Pharmaceutical plant in Wavre, Ieper, and the commemoration ceremony for the 90th anniversary of the battle of Passchendaele in the First World War.
2007 - June: Minister of State Maria Eagle attended a commemorative ceremony for the Irish killed in WW1 at Messines.

 

GEOGRAPHY

Belgium borders on the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands. Belgium enjoys a temperate climate with moderate temperatures, winds predominantly from the west, and frequent rain showers. It has around 65km of sandy beaches and is largely flat, with the exception of the hilly Ardennes area in the south-east.

Bordering countries (and border length):

  • France (620 km);
  • Germany (167 km);
  • Luxembourg (148 km);
  • The Netherlands (450 km).

TRADE AND INVESTMENT

Major trading partners: Germany, Netherlands, France and UK.

  • Belgium’s external trade is concentrated within the EU: 77.2% of its exports are to EU partners, and 73.7% of imports are from the EU.
  • The UK is Belgium’s fourth largest supplier and its fourth largest export market. Belgium is the sixth largest market for UK exports. In 2004, Belgian exports to the UK amounted to €17.1bn, while Belgium’s imports from the UK amounted to almost €15bn.

UK Trade & Investment Country Profile: Belgium

 

POLITICS

Political Background

Article 1 of the Belgian constitution states that there are 3 language communities: Flemish (in the north) and Francophone (in the south), split roughly 60%/40%, and a small German-speaking community (70,000) in the south-east. There are also 3 administrative regions: Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels. There are 10 provinces and almost 600 local authorities. Successive reforms have transferred certain powers to the regions and communities, leaving the Federal Government responsible only for some major issues like defence, foreign affairs, justice, the national budget, including setting and collecting most taxes, and social security. Responsibility for education and culture rests with the communities, while the regions' responsibilities include environment, transport, energy, agriculture and public works. Some issues are divided between the different levels, eg health. Regional and community governments are entirely autonomous and their ministers have equal status with federal ones. Their powers are not therefore devolved as in the UK model.

Federal elections are held every 4 years; regional and community elections every five years and local elections every 6 years. Voting is compulsory at all levels. All the major political parties split along linguistic lines in the 1970s. No party presents candidates across the country as a whole.

2007 Federal Elections

Federal elections were held in Belgium on 10 June 2007. After a period of opposition, the Flemish Christian Democrats emerged as the winners, with both linguistic groups indicating a preference for Centre-Right parties. Both Socialist Parties made significant losses. The Flemish Greens also returned to the Parliament after being ejected in 2003. After a period of sustained growth, the progress of the far-right Vlaams Belang party was halted, although they retained the third highest number of Flemish MPs.

Following the elections, the 4 Christian Democrat and Liberal parties (2 from each linguistic group) began negotiations to form the next government in early July. However, by December they had still not reached a final agreement, mainly due to differences between the parties across the language barrier on issues mainly relating to further transfer of powers from the federal government to the regions, and language and voting rights around Brussels.

As a result, the King asked the outgoing Prime Minister, Guy Verhofstadt, to form an Interim Government to allow negotiations to continue without further effect on the governance of the country. Verhofstadt’s new coalition of both Liberal parties, the Flemish Christian Democrats, the Francophone Centre Democrats and Francophone Socialists was sworn in on 20 December. This Interim Government had  a mandate only until Easter 2008, after which Flemish Christian Democrat leader Yves Leterme, became  Prime Minister with a new government coalition. In December 2008, a government crisis over a separation of powers' issue caused the government to fall and PM Leterme to resign.  The present government coalition was continued under a new PM of the same party Herman Van Rompuy. 

2004 Regional Elections

Elections in the 3 regions of Flanders, Brussels-Capital (divided in to Flemish and Francophone groups) and Wallonia took place on 13 June 2004. The results were a strong protest vote against the then incumbent Liberal/Socialist federal governmentIn Wallonia, and the Francophone group of the Brussels Capital region, the Socialists (PS) , pushed the Francophone Liberals (MR) and Christian Democrats (CDH) into second and third place respectively. The MR is now outside regional government in Wallonia and Brussels, with the PS choosing to form a coalition with the CDH. In Flanders the Christian Democrats became the leading party in the Flemish regional government, which is currently a coalition of Christian Democrats, Liberals and Socialists.

The most notable result was for the far-right Vlaams Blok (VB), which increased its share of the vote from 15% (1999 regional elections) to 24%, making them the largest single Party in Flanders, and from 31% to 34% in the Flemish group of the Brussels Capital region. (They remain excluded from active government by a 'cordon sanitaire'; the party was re-launched in November 2004 as Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) following a Belgian court ruling that the Vlaams Blok was a racist party).

Next elections:

  • Federal level -by June 2011
  • Regional level (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) - June 2009

More information: Belgium election details

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