Denmark (2006) | West Bank (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskommune); Arhus, Bornholm, Frederiksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavn (Copenhagen)*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: as a result of an extensive 2005 local government reform, with 2006 being a transition year, 275 municipalities will be merged to 99 by 1 January 2007, and the 14 counties will be reorganized into five regions |
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Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.7% (male 523,257/female 496,697)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 1,815,240/female 1,787,406) 65 years and over: 15.2% (male 355,656/female 472,405) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.1% (male 505,880; female 481,369)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 598,992; female 572,511) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 33,688; female 44,754) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 92 (2006) | 3 (2002) |
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 (2006) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 64
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 61 (2006) |
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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: 5,860 sq km
land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts | slightly smaller than Delaware |
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 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank had begun in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but have been derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. |
Birth rate | 11.13 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 34.07 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $144 billion
expenditures: $135 billion; including capital expenditures of $4.6 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues: $930 million
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $15 million note: includes Gaza Strip (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Copenhagen
geographic coordinates: 55 40 N, 12 35 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
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Climate | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters |
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 | - |
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: West Bank |
Currency | - | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) |
Death rate | 10.36 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.16 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $352.9 billion (30 June 2005) | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James P. CAIN
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716 telephone: [45] 33 41 71 00 FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23 |
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Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Friis Arne PETERSEN
chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470 consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York |
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Disputes - international | Iceland disputes the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm; Faroese continue to study proposals for full independence; uncontested sovereignty dispute with Canada over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $2 billion (2004) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $800 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) |
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. Nonetheless, the Danish krone remains pegged to the euro. Economic growth gained momentum in 2004 and the upturn accelerated through 2005. Because of high GDP per capita, welfare benefits, a low Gini index, and political stability, the Danish people enjoy living standards topped by no other nation. A major long-term issue will be the sharp decline in the ratio of workers to retirees. | Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996 due to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures during the next five years decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and severely disrupted trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas have resulted in the destruction of much capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Another major loss has been the decline in earnings of Palestinian workers in Israel. International aid of $2 billion in 2001-02 to the West Bank and Gaza Strip have prevented the complete collapse of the economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 31.68 billion kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 15.6 billion kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - imports | 7 billion kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 43.32 billion kWh (2003) | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 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 | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment |
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001) | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) |
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: Council of State appointed by the monarch 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 |
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Exports | 332,100 bbl/day (2001) | $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip |
Exports - commodities | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone |
Exports - partners | Germany 17.5%, Sweden 13.2%, UK 8.8%, US 6.4%, France 5.5%, Netherlands 5.3%, Norway 5.1% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) |
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 | - |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.7 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 24.6% services: 73.5% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.2% (2005 est.) | -22% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 10 00 E | 32 00 N, 35 15 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; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) |
Highways | - | total: 4,500 km
paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements (1997 est.) |
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) | $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods | food, consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | Germany 20.5%, Sweden 13.8%, Norway 6.6%, Netherlands 6.6%, UK 6%, China 4.7%, France 4.2%, Italy 4.1% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) |
Independence | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.6% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Industries | iron, steel, nonferrous metals, chemicals, food processing, machinery and transportation equipment, textiles and clothing, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products, shipbuilding and refurbishment, windmills, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 20.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.8% (2005 est.) | 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, Arctic Council, 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, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 8 (1999) |
Irrigated land | 4,490 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) | - |
Labor force | 2.9 million (2005 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 3%
industry: 21% services: 76% (2004 est.) |
services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) |
Land boundaries | total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
Land use | arable land: 52.59%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 47.22% (2005) |
arable land: NEGL%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | - |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's Assembly or Folketinget (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 8 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 29%, Social Democrats 25.9%, Danish People's Party 13.2%, Conservative Party 10.3%, Social Liberal Party 9.2%, Socialist People's Party 6%, Unity List 3.4%; seats by party - Liberal Party 52, Social Democrats 47, Danish People's Party 24, Conservative Party 18, Social Liberal Party 17, Socialist People's Party 11, Unity List 6; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.79 years
male: 75.49 years female: 80.22 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 72.68 years
male: 70.95 years female: 74.51 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% 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) | Middle East, west of Jordan |
Map references | Europe | Middle East |
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: 293 ships (1000 GRT or over) 7,986,735 GRT/9,936,431 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 7, cargo 63, chemical tanker 48, container 86, liquefied gas 4, livestock carrier 2, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 40, petroleum tanker 23, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 8, specialized tanker 4 foreign-owned: 25 (Canada 1, Germany 13, Greece 5, Greenland 1, Norway 3, Sweden 1, UK 1) registered in other countries: 409 (Antigua and Barbuda 14, Bahamas 59, Belgium 4, Cayman Islands 5, Cyprus 1, Egypt 1, Estonia 2, France 1, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 2, Gibraltar 1, Hong Kong 6, Isle of Man 53, North Korea 1, Liberia 8, Lithuania 10, Malta 6, Marshall Islands 1, Mexico 2, Netherlands 9, Netherlands Antilles 1, Norway 32, Panama 34, Portugal 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 14, Singapore 52, South Africa 1, Spain 1, Sweden 4, UK 46, US 24, Vanuatu 6, Venezuela 3, Vietnam 1) (2006) |
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Military branches | Defense Command: Army Operational Command, Admiral Danish Fleet, Tactical Air Command (2006) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3,271.6 million (2003) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (2004) | NA% |
National holiday | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June (1849) is generally viewed as the National Day | - |
Nationality | noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
noun: NA
adjective: NA |
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 | droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand | arable land |
Net migration rate | 2.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 3.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 12 km; gas 3,931 km; oil 626 km; oil/gas/water 2 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democrats (was Christian People's Party) [Bodil KORNBEK]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership]; Social Democratic Party [Helle THORNING-SCHMIDT]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Soren BALD, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Villy SOEVNDAL] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
Population | 5,450,661 (July 2006 est.) | 2,237,194 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 60% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.33% (2006 est.) | 3.3% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
Railways | total: 2,673 km
standard gauge: 2,673 km 1.435-m gauge (601 km electrified) (2005) |
0 km |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% |
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: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 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: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.35 million (2005) | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 5.469 million (2005) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) | NA |
Terrain | low and flat to gently rolling plains | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 4.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.7% (2005 est.) | 50% (includes Gaza Strip) (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 400 km (2001) | none |