Faroe Islands (2001) | Palau (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 49 municipalities | 16 states; Aimeliik, Airai, Angaur, Hatohobei, Kayangel, Koror, Melekeok, Ngaraard, Ngarchelong, Ngardmau, Ngatpang, Ngchesar, Ngeremlengui, Ngiwal, Peleliu, Sonsorol |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
22.62% (male 5,193; female 5,136) 15-64 years: 63.64% (male 15,463; female 13,596) 65 years and over: 13.74% (male 2,802; female 3,471) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.3% (male 2,789/female 2,622)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 7,664/female 6,549) 65 years and over: 4.6% (male 453/female 502) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | milk, potatoes, vegetables; sheep; salmon, other fish | coconuts, copra, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; fish |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 3 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2006) |
Area | total:
1,399 sq km land: 1,399 sq km water: 0 sq km (some lakes and streams) |
total: 458 sq km
land: 458 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | eight times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The population of the Faroe Islands is largely descended from Viking settlers who arrived in the 9th century. The islands have been connected politically to Denmark since the 14th century. A high degree of self-government was attained in 1948. | After three decades as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific under US administration, this westernmost cluster of the Caroline Islands opted for independence in 1978 rather than join the Federated States of Micronesia. A Compact of Free Association with the US was approved in 1986, but not ratified until 1993. It entered into force the following year, when the islands gained independence. |
Birth rate | 13.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.03 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$488 million expenditures: $484 million, including capital expenditures of $21 million (1999) |
revenues: $72.07 million
expenditures: $72.43 million; including capital expenditures of $12.98 million (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | Torshavn | name: Melekeok
geographic coordinates: 7 29 N, 134 38 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | mild winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy, windy | tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November |
Coastline | 1,117 km | 1,519 km |
Constitution | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) | 1 January 1981 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Faroe Islands local long form: none local short form: Foroyar |
conventional long form: Republic of Palau
conventional short form: Palau local long form: Beluu er a Belau local short form: Belau former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Palau District |
Currency | Danish krone (DKK) | - |
Death rate | 8.69 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.8 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $64 million (1999) | $0 (FY99/00) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1948 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: US ambassador to the Philippines is accredited to Palau
embassy: Koror (no street address) mailing address: P. O. Box 6028, Republic of Palau 96940 telephone: [680] 488-2920, 2990 FAX: [680] 488-2911 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: Ambassador Hersey KYOTA
chancery: 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 452-6814 FAX: [1] (202) 452-6281 consulate(s) general: Honolulu consulate(s): Tamuning (Guam) |
Disputes - international | Faroese are considering proposals for full independence | border delineation disputes being negotiated with Philippines, Indonesia |
Economic aid - recipient | $135 million (annual subsidy from Denmark) (1999) | $19.6 million; note - the Compact of Free Association with the US, entered into after the end of the UN trusteeship on 1 October 1994, provides Palau with up to $700 million in US aid over 15 years in return for furnishing military facilities |
Economy - overview | The Faroese economy has had a strong performance since 1994, mostly as a result of increasing fish landings and high and stable export prices. Unemployment is falling and there are signs of labor shortages in several sectors. The positive economic development has helped the Faroese Home Rule Government produce increasing budget surpluses which in turn help to reduce the large public debt, most of it owed to Denmark. However, the total dependence on fishing makes the Faroese economy extremely vulnerable, and the present fishing efforts appear in excess of what is required to ensure a sustainable level of fishing in the long term. Oil finds close to the Faroese area give hope for deposits in the immediate Faroese area, which may eventually lay the basis for a more diversified economy and thus less dependence on Denmark and Danish economic assistance. Aided by a substantial annual subsidy (15% of GDP) from Denmark, the Faroese have a standard of living not far below the Danes and other Scandinavians. | The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence agriculture, and fishing. The government is the major employer of the work force, relying heavily on financial assistance from the US. Business and tourist arrivals numbered 63,000 in 2003. The population enjoys a per capita income twice that of the Philippines and much of Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development. |
Electricity - consumption | 158.1 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 170 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
58.82% hydro: 41.18% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Slaettaratindur 882 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Ngerchelchuus 242 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | inadequate facilities for disposal of solid waste; threats to the marine ecosystem from sand and coral dredging, illegal fishing practices, and overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Scandinavian | Palauan (Micronesian with Malayan and Melanesian admixtures) 69.9%, Filipino 15.3%, Chinese 4.9%, other Asian 2.4%, white 1.9%, Carolinian 1.4%, other Micronesian 1.1%, other or unspecified 3.2% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 7.951 (January 2001), 8.093 (2000), 6.976 (1999), 6.701 (1998), 6.604 (1997), 5.799 (1966) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Ms. Vibeke LARSEN, chief administrative officer (since NA) head of government: Prime Minister Anfinn KALLSBERG (since 15 May 1998) cabinet: Landsstyri appointed by the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually elected prime minister by the Faroese Parliament; election last held 30 April 1998 (next to be held no later than April 2002) election results: Anfinn KALLSBERG elected prime minister; percent of parliamentary vote - 52.8% note: coalition of People's Party, Republican Party and Home Rule Party |
chief of state: President Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001) and Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001) and Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005) cabinet: NA elections: president and vice president elected on separate tickets by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. reelected president; percent of vote - Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. 64%, Polycarp BASILIUS 33%; Elias Camsek CHIN elected vice president; percent of vote - Elias Camsek CHIN 70%, Sandra PIERANTOZZI 29% |
Exports | $471 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $5.882 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | fish and fish products 94%, stamps, ships (1999) | shellfish, tuna, copra, garments |
Exports - partners | Denmark 32%, UK 21%, France 9%, Germany 7%, Iceland 5%, US 5% (1996) | US, Japan, Singapore (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | white with a red cross outlined in blue that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | light blue with a large yellow disk (representing the moon) shifted slightly to the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $910 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
27% industry: 11% services: 62% (1999) |
agriculture: NA% 6.2%
industry: NA% 12% services: NA% 81.8% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 5.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 62 00 N, 7 00 W | 7 30 N, 134 30 E |
Geography - note | archipelago of 17 inhabited islands and one uninhabited island, and a few uninhabited islets; strategically located along important sea lanes in northeastern Atlantic; precipitous terrain limits habitation to small coastal lowlands | westernmost archipelago in the Caroline chain, consists of six island groups totaling more than 300 islands; includes World War II battleground of Beliliou (Peleliu) and world-famous rock islands |
Highways | total:
463 km paved: 454 km unpaved: 9 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $469 million (c.i.f., 1999) | $107.3 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 29%, consumer goods 36%, raw materials and semi-manufactures 32%, fuels, fish and salt (1999) | machinery and equipment, fuels, metals; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Denmark 28%, Norway 26%, Germany 7%, UK 6% Sweden 5%, Iceland 4%, US (1999) | US, Singapore, Japan, South Korea (2004) |
Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Industries | fishing, fish processing, shipbuilding, construction, handicrafts | tourism, craft items (from shell, wood, pearls), construction, garment making |
Infant mortality rate | 6.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 14.46 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.1% (1999) | 2.7% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | NC, NIB | ACP, AsDB, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IOC, IPU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | none | Supreme Court; National Court; Court of Common Pleas |
Labor force | 24,250 (October 2000) | 9,777 (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | fishing, fish processing, and manufacturing 33%, construction and private services 33%, public services 34% | agriculture: 20%
industry: NA% services: NA% (1990) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 94% (1996) |
arable land: 8.7%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 86.95% (2005) |
Languages | Faroese (derived from Old Norse), Danish | Palauan 64.7% official in all islands except Sonsoral (Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official), Filipino 13.5%, English 9.4%, Chinese 5.7%, Carolinian 1.5%, Japanese 1.5%, other Asian 2.3%, other languages 1.5% (2000 census) |
Legal system | Danish | based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
Legislative branch | unicameral Faroese Parliament or Logting (32 seats; members are elected by popular vote on a proportional basis from the seven constituencies to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 April 1998 (next to be held not later than April 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - Republican Party 23.8%, People's Party 21.3%, Social Democratic Party 21.9%, Union Party 18%, Home Rue Party 7.7%, Center Party 4.1%; seats by party - Republican Party 8, People's Party 8, Social Democratic Party 7, Union Party 6, Home Rule Party 2, Center Party 1 note: election of 2 seats to the Danish Parliament was last held on 11 March 1998 (next to be held not later than March 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Social Democratic Party 1, People's Party 1 |
bicameral Parliament or Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) consists of the Senate (9 seats; members elected by popular vote on a population basis to serve four-year terms) and the House of Delegates (16 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Delegates - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (four new members elected); House of Delegates - percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 16 (one new member elected) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.59 years male: 75.12 years female: 82.06 years |
total population: 70.42 years
male: 67.26 years female: 73.77 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% note: similar to Denmark proper |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92% male: 93% female: 90% (1980 est.) |
Location | Northern Europe, island group between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from Iceland to Norway | Oceania, group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, southeast of the Philippines |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200 NM or agreed boundaries or median line exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM or agreed boundaries or median line territorial sea: 3 NM |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 23,247 GRT/11,736 DWT ships by type: cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Denmark | defense is the responsibility of the US; under a Compact of Free Association between Palau and the US, the US military is granted access to the islands for 50 years, but it has not stationed any military forces there (2005) |
Military branches | defense is the responsibility of Denmark; no organized native military forces; only a small Police Force and Coast Guard are maintained | no regular military forces; Palau National Police (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | NA |
National holiday | Olaifest, 29 July | Constitution Day, 9 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun:
Faroese (singular and plural) adjective: Faroese |
noun: Palauan(s)
adjective: Palauan |
Natural hazards | NA | typhoons (June to December) |
Natural resources | fish, whales, hydropower | forests, minerals (especially gold), marine products, deep-seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 1.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party [Jenis A. RANA]; Home Rule Party [Helena Dam a NEYSTABO]; People's Party [Oli BRECKMANN]; Republican Party [Hogni HOYDAL]; Social Democratic Party [Joannes EIDESGAARD]; Union Party [Edmund JOENSEN] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 45,661 (July 2001 est.) | 20,579 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.78% (2001 est.) | 1.31% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Torshavn, Klaksvik, Tvoroyri, Runavik, Fuglafjorour | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2002) |
Radios | 26,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran | Roman Catholic 41.6%, Protestant 23.3%, Modekngei 8.8% (indigenous to Palau), Seventh-Day Adventist 5.3%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, Latter-Day Saints 0.6%, other religion 3.1%, unspecified or none 16.4% (2000 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.14 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
good international communications; good domestic facilities domestic: digitalization was completed in 1998; both NMT (analog) and GSM (digital) mobile telephone systems are installed international: satellite earth stations - 1 Orion; 1 fiber-optic submarine cable to the Shetland Islands, linking the Faroe Islands with Denmark and Iceland; fiber-optic submarine cable connection to Canada-Europe cable |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 680; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 24,851 (1999) | 6,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 10,761 (1999) | 1,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus 43 low-power repeaters) (September 1995) | 1 (cable) (2005) |
Terrain | rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast | varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs |
Total fertility rate | 2.3 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.46 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 1% (October 2000) | 4.2% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |