LIÈGE - Geography and history
The province of Liège consists of four geographical regions: the Ardennes, Condroz, the Pays de Hervé and Hesbaye, and its hydrographical network comprises the Meuse and its tributaries. The land rises gradually from west to east and from Hesbaye to the Hautes Fagnes plateau, which contains Belgium's highest point at 694 m. The climate is of the cool, temperate oceanic type. The Hesbaye plateau is covered with fertile alluvium, whilst the Condroz region consists of a series of rectilinear ridges and depressions. The secondary limestone bed of the Pays de Hervé, much of which is cut through by rivers, is covered with clay. The Ardennes consists of ancient primary schists and sandstones.
The vegetation is diversified, reflecting these different physical conditions. The soils of Hesbaye are used for cereal growing, whilst the hills of the Ardennes are covered by forests {mainly pine) interspersed with open fields. The Pays de Herve are used for cattle rearing and fruit growing. The Condroz has a mixture of crops, open fields and forests.
The official languages are French and German, which are spoken by 93% and 7% of the population respectively.
The province of Liège comprises 4 districts: Huy, Liège, Verviers and Waremme. The total area is 3 862 km².
From the population registered in 2002 (1 024 130 inhabitants) more than half (57%) live in the arrondissement of Liège.
Land of traditional industry with an eye to the future
Bordering the three countries of Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, the province of Liège occupies a central position in north-west Europe.
It contains a major, seven-branched motorway junction, and has excellent inland waterway and rail connections.
Numerous initiatives have been taken to promote the economic development of the province and revive its industrial infrastructure, and results have been encouraging: the iron and steel industry is once again flourishing, a number of large arms factories, mechanical engineering and aeronautical plants have been set up, and a dense network of SMEs in various sectors (agri-food, electronics, biotechnology, etc.) has been established. All of these have highly skilled workforces.
However, the economic redevelopment of the Liège basin, with its traditional industries of coal, iron and steel, is a long-term concern: the region's image does not yet match the new potential of the province, which is itself suffering from an ageing and declining population structure and high unemployment caused by the demise of major traditional industries.
A region of industry, agriculture and tourism
The districts of Liège and Verviers, situated in the centre and east of the province, are regions with a long industrial tradition, the first owing its former prosperity to coal-mining and the second to textiles.
The decline of these industries has led to many jobs being lost and reconversion has given birth to various activities in the electronics, aeronautics, agri-food and biotechnology industries. The economy is also becoming more orientated towards the services sector and a dense network of SMEs is being created. The steel industry is still to be found in Liège and even appears to have prospects for the future.
The districts of Huy and Waremme, situated in the west of the province, are the most agricultural. Starting from an agri-food base, Huy and Waremme have slowly developed towards an economy which is more industrial in character.
A large proportion of the labour force remains in Liège, which has the greatest density of population.
Tourism is mainly developed in the southeast of the province.
Income is fairly evenly divided throughout the province.
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