Page last updated on February 23,

Location:
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Croatia

Geographic coordinates:
44 00 N, 18 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 51,197 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 129
land: 51,187 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 10 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than West Virginia

Land boundaries:
total: 1,538 km
border countries: Croatia 932 km, Montenegro 249 km, Serbia 357 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
20 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
no data available

Climate:
hot summers and cold winters; areas of high elevation have short, cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy winters along coast
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mountains and valleys

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: Maglic 2,386 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - highest point country ranks ]

Natural resources:
coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, cobalt, manganese, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand, timber, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 19.61%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 1.89%
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
other: 78.5% (2005)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
30 sq km (2008)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Total renewable water resources:
37.5 cu km (2003)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]

Natural hazards:
destructive earthquakes

Environment - current issues:
air pollution from metallurgical plants; sites for disposing of urban waste are limited; water shortages and destruction of infrastructure because of the 1992-95 civil strife; deforestation

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
within Bosnia and Herzegovina's recognized borders, the country is divided into a joint Bosniak/Croat Federation (about 51% of the territory) and the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska or RS (about 49% of the territory); the region called Herzegovina is contiguous to Croatia and Montenegro, and traditionally has been settled by an ethnic Croat majority in the west and an ethnic Serb majority in the east