Denmark (2004) | Aruba (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskommune); Arhus, Bornholm, Frederiksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing overseas administrative divisions |
none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.9% (male 523,888; female 497,420)
15-64 years: 66.2% (male 1,808,376; female 1,774,388) 65 years and over: 15% (male 344,113; female 465,207) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 21% (male 7,635; female 7,169)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 23,270; female 24,906) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 3,081; female 4,380) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish | aloes; livestock; fish |
Airports | 99 (2003 est.) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 63 (2004 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 43,094 sq km
land: 42,394 sq km water: 700 sq km note: includes the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the rest of metropolitan Denmark (the Jutland Peninsula, and the major islands of Sjaelland and Fyn), but excludes the Faroe Islands and Greenland |
total: 193 sq km
land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts | slightly larger than Washington, DC |
Background | Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation that is participating in the general political and economic integration of Europe. It joined NATO in 1949 and the EEC (now the EU) in 1973. However, the country has opted out of certain elements of the European Union's Maastricht Treaty, including the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), European defense cooperation, and issues concerning certain justice and home affairs. | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. |
Birth rate | 11.59 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 12.22 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $118.5 billion
expenditures: $116 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $135.81 million
expenditures: $147 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000) |
Capital | Copenhagen | Oranjestad |
Climate | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 7,314 km | 68.5 km |
Constitution | 5 June 1849 adoption of original constitution; a major overhaul of 5 June 1953 allowed for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state | 1 January 1986 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Aruba |
Currency | Danish krone (DKK) | Aruban guilder/florin (AWG) |
Death rate | 10.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.29 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $21.7 billion (2000) | $285 million (1996) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart A. BERNSTEIN; note - will leave 15 January 2005
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716 telephone: [45] 35 55 31 44 FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23 |
chief of mission: Consul General Deborah A. BOLTON
embassy: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 461-3066 FAX: [599] (9) 461-6489 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ulrik Andreas FEDERSPIEL
chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Disputes - international | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area) remains dormant; dispute with Iceland over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 nm; disputes with Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 nm; Faroese continue to study proposals for full independence; uncontested dispute with Canada over Hans Island sovereignty in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.63 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 |
Economy - overview | This thoroughly modern market economy features high-tech agriculture, up-to-date small-scale and corporate industry, extensive government welfare measures, comfortable living standards, a stable currency, and high dependence on foreign trade. Denmark is a net exporter of food and energy and enjoys a comfortable balance of payments surplus. Government objectives include streamlining the bureaucracy and further privatization of state assets. The government has been successful in meeting, and even exceeding, the economic convergence criteria for participating in the third phase (a common European currency) of the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), but Denmark has decided not to join 12 other EU members in the euro; even so, the Danish Krone remains pegged to the euro. Given the sluggish state of the European economy, growth in 2003 was a mere 0.3%. | Tourism is the mainstay of the small, open Aruban economy, with offshore banking and oil refining and storage also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and low unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. The government's goal of balancing the budget within two years will hamper expenditures, as will the decline in stopover tourist arrivals following the 11 September terrorist attacks. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.41 billion kWh (2001) | 418.5 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 8.775 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 8.199 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 35.47 billion kWh (2001) | 450 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution, principally from vehicle and power plant emissions; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and pesticides | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001), 8.0831 (2000), 6.9762 (1999) | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.7900 (fixed rate since 1986) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26 May 1968)
head of government: Prime Minister Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN (since 27 November 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Nelson O. ODUBER (since 30 October 2001); deputy prime minister NA cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by December 2005) election results: Nelson O. ODUBER elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
Exports | 332,100 bbl/day (2001) | $2.58 billion f.o.b. (including oil reexports) (2000) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment |
Exports - partners | Germany 18.7%, Sweden 12.6%, UK 8.5%, US 6.2%, Norway 5.7%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 4.7% (2003) | US 42%, Colombia 20%, Netherlands 12% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side, and that design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) was subsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $167.2 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.94 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 22.1% services: 75.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $31,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0% (2003 est.) | 2.5% (2000) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 10 00 E | 12 30 N, 69 58 W |
Geography - note | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen | a flat, riverless island renowned for its white sand beaches; its tropical climate is moderated by constant trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean; the temperature is almost constant at about 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit) |
Highways | total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
total: 800 km
paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some accompanying money-laundering activity |
Imports | 195,000 bbl/day (2001) | $2.61 billion f.o.b. (2000) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Germany 23.1%, Sweden 13%, UK 7%, Netherlands 6.9%, France 4.9%, Norway 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2003) | US 63%, Netherlands 11%, Netherlands Antilles 3%, Japan (1999) |
Independence | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.3% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.63 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
6.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | 4% (2000) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | NA |
Irrigated land | 4,760 sq km (1998 est.) | 0.01 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) | Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 2.863 million (2003 est.) | 41,501 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 17%, services 79% (2002 est.) | most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining |
Land boundaries | total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 54.02%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 45.79% (2001) |
arable land: 10.53% (including aloe 0.01%)
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.47% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish |
Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 November 2001 (next to be held 8 February 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 31%, Social Democrats 29%, Danish People's Party 12%, Conservative Party 9%, Socialist People's Party 6%, Social Liberal Party 5%, Christian People's Party (now Christian Democrats) 2%, Unity List 2%; seats by party - Liberal Party 56, Social Democrats 52, Danish People's Party 22, Conservative Party 16, Socialist People's Party 12, Social Liberal Party 9, Christian People's Party (now Christian Democrats) 4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands |
unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MEP 52.4%, AVP 26.7%, PPA 9.6%, OLA 5.7%, Aliansa 3.5%, other 2.1%; seats by party - MEP 12, AVP 6, PPA 2, OLA 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.44 years
male: 75.17 years female: 79.83 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 78.67 years
male: 75.32 years female: 82.19 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA female: NA |
definition: NA
total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes two major islands (Sjaelland and Fyn) | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 276 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,952,473 GRT/9,030,444 DWT
by type: bulk 4, cargo 77, chemical tanker 36, container 83, liquefied gas 15, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 27, rail car carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 11, short-sea/passenger 5, specialized tanker 4 foreign-owned: Germany 1, Greece 1, Indonesia 2, Norway 5 registered in other countries: 284 (2004 est.) |
note: there is one foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Monaco 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3,271.6 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2003) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,276,087 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,088,751 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 30,333 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day | Flag Day, 18 March |
Nationality | noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
Natural hazards | flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand | NEGL; white sandy beaches |
Net migration rate | 2.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 12 km; gas 3,892 km; oil 455 km; oil/gas/water 2 km; unknown (oil/water) 64 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian Democrats (was Christian People's Party) [Marianne KARLSMOSE]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Social Democratic Party [Mogens LYKKETOFT]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Soren BALD, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership] | Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Alliance or Aliansa [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Jan (Henny) H. EMAN]; Concentration for the Liberation of Aruba or CLA [leader NA]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson O. ODUBER]; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA [Urbana LOPEZ]; National Democratic Action or ADN [Pedro Charro KELLY] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 5,413,392 (July 2004 est.) | 70,441 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.35% (2004 est.) | 0.59% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aabenraa, Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 50,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 3,002 km
standard gauge: 3,002 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified) (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent telephone and telegraph services
domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems international: country code - 45; 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Canada, Faroe Islands, Germany, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and UK; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat (Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: more than adequate international: 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,610,100 (2003) | 33,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,785,300 (2003) | 3,402 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | low and flat to gently rolling plains | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.1% (2003) | 0.6% |
Waterways | 417 km (2001) | none |