06/08/2002 (Agence Europe) - In 2001, the unemployment rate in the EU varied from 1.2% of the working population in the region of Utrecht, in the Netherlands to 33.3% in Réunion, part of France's overseas' territories. In the candidate countries of central Europe, similar disparities were observed, with a rate of 2.0% in the Közép-Magyarorsàg region in Hungary and 32.8% in Severozapaden, Bulgaria. The average rate of unemployment in the EU was 7.6% but 16 regions had rates that were above or equal to 15.2% (in Italy, France, Germany, Spain and Greece). Although women are the most affected by unemployment, the unemployment rate in candidate countries is very similar for men and women. We will be publishing further details on this subject in our Statistics Selection.