Denmark (2004) | Bhutan (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 |
18 districts (dzongkhag, singular and plural); Bumthang, Chhukha, Chirang, Dagana, Geylegphug, Ha, Lhuntshi, Mongar, Paro, Pemagatsel, Punakha, Samchi, Samdrup Jongkhar, Shemgang, Tashigang, Thimphu, Tongsa, Wangdi Phodrang
note: there may be two new districts named Gasa and Yangtse |
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: 39.8% (male 431,883; female 401,386)
15-64 years: 56.2% (male 606,184; female 571,310) 65 years and over: 4% (male 42,193; female 41,220) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish | rice, corn, root crops, citrus, foodgrains; dairy products, eggs |
Airports | 99 (2003 est.) | 2 (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
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 63 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
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: 47,000 sq km
land: 47,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts | about half the size of Indiana |
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. | In 1865, Britain and Bhutan signed the Treaty of Sinchulu, under which Bhutan would receive an annual subsidy in exchange for ceding some border land. Under British influence, a monarchy was set up in 1907; three years later, a treaty was signed whereby the British agreed not to interfere in Bhutanese internal affairs and Bhutan allowed Britain to direct its foreign affairs. This role was assumed by independent India after 1947. Two years later, a formal Indo-Bhutanese accord returned the areas of Bhutan annexed by the British, formalized the annual subsidies the country received, and defined India's responsibilities in defense and foreign relations. A refugee issue of some 85,000 Bhutanese in Nepal remains unresolved; 90% of the refugees are housed in seven United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camps. Maoist Assamese separatists from India, who have established themselves in the southeast portion of Bhutan, have drawn Indian cross-border incursions. |
Birth rate | 11.59 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 35.26 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $118.5 billion
expenditures: $116 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $146 million
expenditures: $152 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96 est.) note: the government of India finances nearly three-fifths of Bhutan's budget expenditures |
Capital | Copenhagen | Thimphu |
Climate | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers | varies; tropical in southern plains; cool winters and hot summers in central valleys; severe winters and cool summers in Himalayas |
Coastline | 7,314 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
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 | no written constitution or bill of rights; note - Bhutan uses 1953 Royal decree for the Constitution of the National Assembly; on 7 July 1998, a Royal edict was ratified giving the National Assembly additional powers |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Bhutan
conventional short form: Bhutan |
Currency | Danish krone (DKK) | ngultrum (BTN); Indian rupee (INR) |
Death rate | 10.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 13.74 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $21.7 billion (2000) | $245 million (1998) |
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 |
the US and Bhutan have no formal diplomatic relations, although informal contact is maintained between the Bhutanese and US Embassy in New Delhi (India) |
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; note - Bhutan has a Permanent Mission to the UN; address: 2 United Nations Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10017; telephone [1] (212) 826-1919; the Bhutanese mission to the UN has consular jurisdiction in the US
consulate(s) general: New York |
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 | approximately 100,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal, 90% of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees camps, place decades-long strains on Nepal |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.63 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | substantial aid from India and other nations |
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%. | The economy, one of the world's smallest and least developed, is based on agriculture and forestry, providing the main livelihood for more than 90% of the population. Agriculture consists largely of subsistence farming and animal husbandry. Rugged mountains dominate the terrain and make the building of roads and other infrastructure difficult and expensive. The economy is closely aligned with India's through strong trade and monetary links. The industrial sector is technologically backward, with most production of the cottage industry type. Most development projects, such as road construction, rely on Indian migrant labor. Bhutan's hydropower potential and its attraction for tourists are key resources. The Bhutanese Government has made some progress in expanding the nation's productive base and improving social welfare. Model education, social, and environment programs in Bhutan are underway with support from multilateral development organizations. Each economic program takes into account the government's desire to protect the country's environment and cultural traditions. Detailed controls and uncertain policies in areas like industrial licensing, trade, labor, and finance continue to hamper foreign investment. Major hydroelectric projects will lead expansion of GDP in 2002 by an estimated 6%. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.41 billion kWh (2001) | 380.68 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 8.775 billion kWh (2001) | 1.385 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 8.199 billion kWh (2001) | 21 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 35.47 billion kWh (2001) | 1.876 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 100% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
lowest point: Drangme Chhu 97 m
highest point: Kula Kangri 7,553 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 | soil erosion; limited access to potable water |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali | Bhote 50%, ethnic Nepalese 35% (includes Lhotsampas--one of several Nepalese ethnic groups), indigenous or migrant tribes 15% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001), 8.0831 (2000), 6.9762 (1999) | ngultrum per US dollar - 48.336 (January 2002), 47.186 (2001), 44.942 (2000), 43.055 (1999), 41.259 (1998), 36.313 (1997); note - the Bhutanese ngultrum is at par with the Indian rupee which is also legal tender |
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: King Jigme Singye WANGCHUCK (since 24 July 1972)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers Lyonpo Khandu WANGCHUK (since 8 August 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers (Lhengye Shungtsog) nominated by the monarch, approved by the National Assembly; members serve fixed, five-year terms; note - there is also a Royal Advisory Council (Lodoi Tsokde), members nominated by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary, but democratic reforms in July 1998 grant the National Assembly authority to remove the monarch with two-thirds vote |
Exports | 332,100 bbl/day (2001) | $154 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills | electricity (to India), cardamom, gypsum, timber, handicrafts, cement, fruit, precious stones, spices |
Exports - partners | Germany 18.7%, Sweden 12.6%, UK 8.5%, US 6.2%, Norway 5.7%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 4.7% (2003) | India 94%, Bangladesh |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper triangle is yellow and the lower triangle is orange; centered along the dividing line is a large black and white dragon facing away from the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $167.2 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 22.1% services: 75.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 45%
industry: 20% services: 35% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $31,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,200 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0% (2003 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 10 00 E | 27 30 N, 90 30 E |
Geography - note | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen | landlocked; strategic location between China and India; controls several key Himalayan mountain passes |
Highways | total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
total: 3,285 km
paved: 1,994 km unpaved: 1,291 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 195,000 bbl/day (2001) | $196 million c.i.f. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods | fuel and lubricants, grain, machinery and parts, vehicles, fabrics, rice |
Imports - partners | Germany 23.1%, Sweden 13%, UK 7%, Netherlands 6.9%, France 4.9%, Norway 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2003) | India 77%, Japan, UK, Germany, US |
Independence | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy | 8 August 1949 (from India) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.3% (2003 est.) | 9.3% (1996 est.) |
Industries | food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills | cement, wood products, processed fruits, alcoholic beverages, calcium carbide |
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.) |
106.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | 7% (2000 est.) |
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 | AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IMF, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | NA |
Irrigated land | 4,760 sq km (1998 est.) | 400 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) | Supreme Court of Appeal (the monarch); High Court (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 2.863 million (2003 est.) | NA
note: massive lack of skilled labor |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 17%, services 79% (2002 est.) | agriculture 93%, services 5%, industry and commerce 2% |
Land boundaries | total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
total: 1,075 km
border countries: China 470 km, India 605 km |
Land use | arable land: 54.02%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 45.79% (2001) |
arable land: 2.98%
permanent crops: 0.43% other: 96.59% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Dzongkha (official), Bhotes speak various Tibetan dialects, Nepalese speak various Nepalese dialects |
Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on Indian law and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 National Assembly or Tshogdu (150 seats; 105 elected from village constituencies, 10 represent religious bodies, and 35 are designated by the monarch to represent government and other secular interests; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held NA (next to be held NA) election results: NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.44 years
male: 75.17 years female: 79.83 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 53.19 years
male: 53.53 years female: 52.83 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.2% male: 56.2% female: 28.1% (1995 est.) |
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) | Southern Asia, between China and India |
Map references | Europe | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
none (landlocked) |
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.) |
- |
Military branches | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard | Royal Bhutan Army, Royal Bodyguard, National Militia, Royal Bhutan Police, Forest Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3,271.6 million (2003) | $9.3 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2003) | 1.9% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,276,087 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 517,470 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,088,751 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 276,303 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 30,333 (2004 est.) | males: 21,167 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day | National Day (Ugyen WANGCHUCK became first hereditary king), 17 December (1907) |
Nationality | noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
noun: Bhutanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Bhutanese |
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 | violent storms from the Himalayas are the source of the country's name which translates as Land of the Thunder Dragon; frequent landslides during the rainy season |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand | timber, hydropower, gypsum, calcium carbide |
Net migration rate | 2.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 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] | no legal parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Buddhist clergy; ethnic Nepalese organizations leading militant antigovernment campaign; Indian merchant community; United Front for Democracy (exiled) |
Population | 5,413,392 (July 2004 est.) | 2,094,176
note: other estimates range as low as 810,000 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.35% (2004 est.) | 2.15% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aabenraa, Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 37,000 (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% | Lamaistic Buddhist 75%, Indian- and Nepalese-influenced Hinduism 25% |
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: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | each family has one vote in village-level elections |
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: domestic telephone service is very poor with few telephones in use international: international telephone and telegraph service is by landline through India; a satellite earth station was planned (1990) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,610,100 (2003) | 6,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,785,300 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | low and flat to gently rolling plains | mostly mountainous with some fertile valleys and savanna |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.1% (2003) | NA% |
Waterways | 417 km (2001) | none |