Denmark (2004) | French Polynesia (2006) | |
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 (overseas lands of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are five archipelagic divisions named Archipel des Marquises, Archipel des Tuamotu, Archipel des Tubuai, Iles du Vent, Iles Sous-le-Vent
note: Clipperton Island is administered by France from French Polynesia |
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: 26.1% (male 36,541/female 34,999)
15-64 years: 67.9% (male 96,769/female 89,593) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 8,428/female 8,248) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish | coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits, coffee; poultry, beef, dairy products |
Airports | 99 (2003 est.) | 51 (2006) |
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: 39
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 25 under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 63 (2004 est.) |
total: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
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: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls)
land: 3,660 sq km water: 507 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts | slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut |
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. | The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996. In recent years, French Polynesia's autonomy has been considerably expanded. |
Birth rate | 11.59 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 16.68 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $118.5 billion
expenditures: $116 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $865 million
expenditures: $644.1 million; including capital expenditures of $185 million (1996) |
Capital | Copenhagen | name: Papeete
geographic coordinates: 17 32 S, 149 34 W time difference: UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers | tropical, but moderate |
Coastline | 7,314 km | 2,525 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 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
conventional long form: Overseas Lands of French Polynesia
conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Pays d'outre-mer de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania |
Currency | Danish krone (DKK) | - |
Death rate | 10.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4.69 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $21.7 billion (2000) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas lands of France; overseas territory of France from 1946-2004 |
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 |
none (overseas lands of France) |
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 (overseas lands of France) |
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 | - | $580 million (2004) |
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%. | Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence agricultural economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. With the halt of French nuclear testing in 1996, the military contribution to the economy fell sharply. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. Other sources of income are pearl farming and deep-sea commercial fishing. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefits substantially from development agreements with France aimed principally at creating new businesses and strengthening social services. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.41 billion kWh (2001) | 459.2 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 8.775 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 8.199 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 35.47 billion kWh (2001) | 493.7 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 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 | Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001), 8.0831 (2000), 6.9762 (1999) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001)
note: pegged at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro |
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: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Anne BOQUET (since September 2005)
head of government: President of French Polynesia Oscar TEMARU (since 3 March 2005); President of the Territorial Assembly Antony GEROS (since 9 May 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers; president submits a list of members of the Territorial Assembly for approval by them to serve as ministers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the territorial government and the president of the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly for five-year terms (no term limits) |
Exports | 332,100 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills | cultured pearls, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat |
Exports - partners | Germany 18.7%, Sweden 12.6%, UK 8.5%, US 6.2%, Norway 5.7%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 4.7% (2003) | France 46.3%, Japan 20.8%, Niger 12.8%, US 12.5% (2005) |
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 | two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $167.2 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 22.1% services: 75.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 3.1%
industry: 19% services: 76.9% (2002) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $31,100 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 0% (2003 est.) | NA% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 10 00 E | 15 00 S, 140 00 W |
Geography - note | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen | includes five archipelagoes (4 volcanic, 1 coral); Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru |
Government - note | - | under certain acts of France, French Polynesia has acquired autonomy in all areas except those relating to police and justice, monetary policy, tertiary education, immigration, and defense and foreign affairs; the duties of its president are fashioned after those of the French prime minister |
Heliports | - | 1 (2006) |
Highways | total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
- |
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) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods | fuels, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment |
Imports - partners | Germany 23.1%, Sweden 13%, UK 7%, Netherlands 6.9%, France 4.9%, Norway 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2003) | France 52.7%, Singapore 14.9%, NZ 6.8%, US 6.6% (2005) |
Independence | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy | none (overseas lands of France) |
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, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts, phosphates |
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.) |
total: 8.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | 1.1% (2006 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 | FZ, ICFTU, PIF (observer), SPC, UPU, WMO |
Irrigated land | 4,760 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif |
Labor force | 2.863 million (2003 est.) | 65,870 (December 2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 17%, services 79% (2002 est.) | agriculture: 13%
industry: 19% services: 68% (2002) |
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: 0.75%
permanent crops: 5.5% other: 93.75% (2005) |
Languages | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
French 61.1% (official), Polynesian 31.4% (official), Asian languages 1.2%, other 0.3%, unspecified 6% (2002 census) |
Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on French system |
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 Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (57 seats - changed from 49 seats for May 2004 election; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held May 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 28, Union for Democracy 27, New Star 1, This Country is Yours 1; after by-elections of 13 February 2005 seating was as follows: People's Rally for the Republic 27, Union for Democracy 27, and Alliance for a New Democracy 3 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; two seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, UMP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.44 years
male: 75.17 years female: 79.83 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 76.1 years
male: 73.69 years female: 78.63 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 14 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1977 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) | Oceania, archipelagoes in the South Pacific Ocean about one-half of the way from South America to Australia |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
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
exclusive economic zone: 200 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.) |
total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 23,684 GRT/17,291 DWT
by type: cargo 4, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 1 (France 1) registered in other countries: 2 (Wallis and Futuna 2) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie and National Police Force |
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 | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
noun: French Polynesian(s)
adjective: French Polynesian |
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 | occasional cyclonic storms in January |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand | timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 2.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 2.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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] | Alliance for a New Democracy or ADN [Nicole BOUTEAU and Philip SCHYLE](includes the parties The New Star and This Country is Yours); Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]; New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]; People's Rally for the Republic of Polynesia or RPR (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE]; Union for Democracy or UPD [Oscar TEMARU] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 5,413,392 (July 2004 est.) | 274,578 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.35% (2004 est.) | 1.48% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aabenraa, Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 14, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Railways | total: 3,002 km
standard gauge: 3,002 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified) (2003) |
- |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% | Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 10%, no religion 6% |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2006 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: NA international: country code - 689; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,610,100 (2003) | 53,400 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,785,300 (2003) | 87,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) | 7 (plus 17 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | low and flat to gently rolling plains | mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.01 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.1% (2003) | 11.8% (1994) |
Waterways | 417 km (2001) | - |