Fiji (2006) | Denmark (2003) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 4 divisions and 1 dependency*; Central, Eastern, Northern, Rotuma*, Western | metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskomunes); Arhus, Bornholm, Fredericksberg*, 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.1% (male 143,847/female 138,061)
15-64 years: 64.6% (male 293,072/female 292,312) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 17,583/female 21,074) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.7% (male 516,872; female 490,543)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,809,138; female 1,762,577) 65 years and over: 15% (male 338,141; female 467,113) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; cattle, pigs, horses, goats; fish | barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 28 (2006) | 104 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
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 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 18 (2006) |
total: 76
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 71 (2002) |
Area | total: 18,270 sq km
land: 18,270 sq km water: 0 sq km |
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 |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts |
Background | Fiji became independent in 1970, after nearly a century as a British colony. Democratic rule was interrupted by two military coups in 1987, caused by concern over a government perceived as dominated by the Indian community (descendants of contract laborers brought to the islands by the British in the 19th century). The coups and a 1990 constitution that cemented native Melanesian control of Fiji, led to heavy Indian emigration; the population loss resulted in economic difficulties, but ensured that Melanesians became the majority. A new constitution enacted in 1997 was more equitable. Free and peaceful elections in 1999 resulted in a government led by an Indo-Fijian, but a civilian-led coup in May 2000 ushered in a prolonged period of political turmoil. Parliamentary elections held in August 2001 provided Fiji with a democratically elected government led by Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE. | 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) and issues concerning certain justice and home affairs. |
Birth rate | 22.55 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 11.52 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $720.5 million
expenditures: $728.3 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $52.9 billion
expenditures: $51.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2001 est.) |
Capital | name: Suva (on Viti Levu)
geographic coordinates: 18 08 S, 178 25 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Copenhagen |
Climate | tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation | temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 1,129 km | 7,314 km |
Constitution | enacted on 25 July 1997 to encourage multiculturalism and make multiparty government mandatory; effective 28 July 1998 | 1849 was the original constitution; there was a major overhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Fiji Islands
conventional short form: Fiji local long form: Republic of the Fiji Islands/Matanitu ko Viti local short form: Fiji/Viti |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark local long form: Kongeriget Danmark local short form: Danmark |
Currency | - | Danish krone (DKK) |
Death rate | 5.65 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 10.72 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $127 million (2004 est.) | $21.7 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Larry Miles DINGER
embassy: 31 Loftus Street, Suva mailing address: P. O. Box 218, Suva telephone: [679] 331-4466 FAX: [679] 330-0081 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart A. BERNSTEIN
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jesoni VITUSAGAVULU
chancery: 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 240, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337-8320 FAX: [1] (202) 337-1996 |
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, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area); 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 are considering proposals for full independence; uncontested dispute with Canada over Hans Island sovereignty in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.63 billion (1999) |
Economic aid - recipient | $63.9 million (2004) | - |
Economy - overview | Fiji, endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, is one of the most developed of the Pacific island economies, though still with a large subsistence sector. Sugar exports, remittances from Fijians working abroad, and a growing tourist industry - with 300,000 to 400,000 tourists annually - are the major sources of foreign exchange. Fiji's sugar has special access to European Union markets, but will be harmed by the EU's decision to cut sugar subsidies. Sugar processing makes up one-third of industrial activity but is not efficient. Long-term problems include low investment, uncertain land ownership rights, and the government's ability to manage its budget. Yet, because of a tourist boom, short-run economic prospects are good, provided tensions do not again erupt between indigenous Fijians and Indo-Fijians. Overseas remittances from Fijians working in Kuwait and Iraq have increased significantly. | 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 the 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 1.1%. |
Electricity - consumption | 721.4 million kWh (2003) | 32.41 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 8.775 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 8.199 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 775.7 million kWh (2003) | 35.47 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 82.7%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 17.3% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tomanivi 1,324 m |
lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 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, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Fijian 51% (predominantly Melanesian with a Polynesian admixture), Indian 44%, European, other Pacific Islanders, overseas Chinese, and other 5% (1998 est.) | Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali |
Exchange rates | Fijian dollars per US dollar - 1.691 (2005), 1.7331 (2004), 1.8958 (2003), 2.1869 (2002), 2.2766 (2001) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 7.89 (2002), 8.32 (2001), 8.08 (2000), 6.98 (1999), 6.7 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda (since 18 July 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE (since 10 September 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister from among the members of Parliament and is responsible to Parliament elections: president elected by the Great Council of Chiefs for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); prime minister appointed by the president; election last held 8 March 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda elected president by the Great Council of Chiefs; percent of vote - NA |
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 |
Exports | NA bbl/day | 332,100 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, garments, gold, timber, fish, molasses, coconut oil | machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills |
Exports - partners | US 19.7%, Australia 17%, UK 12.3%, Japan 5.4%, Samoa 4.1% (2005) | Germany 17.1%, Sweden 11.6%, UK 7.8%, US 6.8%, France 5.8%, Norway 5.7%, Japan 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield depicts a yellow lion above a white field quartered by the cross of Saint George featuring stalks of sugarcane, a palm tree, bananas, and a white dove | 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 - $155.3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 13.5% services: 77.6% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 26% services: 71% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $28,900 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% (2005 est.) | 1.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 00 S, 175 00 E | 56 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | includes 332 islands; approximately 110 are inhabited | controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen |
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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.) |
Imports | NA bbl/day | 195,000 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, food, chemicals | machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | Singapore 27.4%, Australia 23.6%, NZ 18.9%, Thailand 4.5% (2005) | Germany 22.9%, Sweden 10.7%, UK 8.7%, Netherlands 7.8%, France 6%, Norway 4.9%, Italy 4.4% (2002) |
Independence | 10 October 1970 (from UK) | first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1.4% (2002 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, clothing, copra, gold, silver, lumber, small cottage industries | food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 4.9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2005) | 2.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, 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, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 13 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (2003) | 4,760 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeal; High Court; Magistrates' Courts | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) |
Labor force | 137,000 (1999) | 2.856 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 70%
industry and services: 30% (2001 est.) |
services 79%, industry 17%, agriculture 4% (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.95%
permanent crops: 4.65% other: 84.4% (2005) |
arable land: 55.74%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 44.07% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Fijian (official), Hindustani | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
Legal system | based on British system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (32 seats; 14 appointed by the president on the advice of the Great Council of Chiefs, 9 appointed by the president on the advice of the Prime Minister, 8 on the advice of the Opposition Leader, and 1 appointed on the advice of the council of Rotuma) and the House of Representatives (71 seats; 23 reserved for ethnic Fijians, 19 reserved for ethnic Indians, 3 reserved for other ethnic groups, 1 reserved for the council of Rotuma constituency encompassing the whole of Fiji, and 25 open seats; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 25 August through 1 September and 19 September 2001 (next to be held 6-13 May 2006) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - SDL 27.5%, FLP 26.5%, MV 4.2%, NLUP 1.3%, NFP 1.2%, independents 1.4%, UGP .3%; seats by party - SDL 32, FLP 27, MV 6, NLUP 2, NFP 1, independents 2, UGP 1 |
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 by November 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; 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 4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.82 years
male: 67.32 years female: 72.45 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 77.1 years
male: 74.48 years female: 79.87 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 95.5% female: 91.9% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Oceania, island group in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | 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) |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; rectilinear shelf claim added |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 15,867 GRT/8,432 DWT
by type: passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Australia 1) (2006) |
total: 282 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,714,557 GRT/8,715,716 DWT
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 85, chemical tanker 29, container 77, liquefied gas 19, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 28, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 11, short-sea passenger 6, specialized tanker 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1, Greenland 1, Indonesia 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 9, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF): Land Forces, Naval Forces (2006) | Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $36 million (2004) | $2.47 billion (FY99/00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.2% (FY02) | 1.4% (FY99/00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,282,315 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,094,611 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 28,198 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, second Monday of October (1970) | none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day |
Nationality | noun: Fijian(s)
adjective: Fijian |
noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
Natural hazards | cyclonic storms can occur from November to January | 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 |
Natural resources | timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil potential, hydropower | petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, stone, gravel and sand |
Net migration rate | -2.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 2.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 12 km; gas 3,892 km; oil 455 km; oil/gas/water 2 km; unknown (oil/water) 64 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Conservative Alliance Party/Matanitu Vanua or CAMV [Ratu Josefa DIMURI]; Dodonu Ni Taukei Party or DNT [Fereti S. DEWA]; Fiji Democratic Party or FDP [Filipe BOLE] (a merger of the Christian Democrat Alliance or VLV [Poesci Waqalevu BUNE], Fijian Association Party or FAP, Fijian Political Party or SVT (primarily Fijian) [Sitiveni RABUKA], and New Labor Unity Party or NLUP [Ofa SWANN]); Fiji Labor Party or FLP [Mahendra CHAUDHRY]; General Voters Party or GVP (became part of United General Party); Girmit Heritage Party or GHP; Justice and Freedom Party or AIM; Lio 'On Famor Rotuma Party or LFR; National Federation Party or NFP (primarily Indian) [Pramond RAE]; Nationalist Vanua Takolavo Party or NVTLP [Saula TELAWA]; Party of National Unity or PANU [Ponipate LESAVUA]; Party of the Truth or POTT; United Fiji Party/Sogosogo Duavata ni Lewenivanua or SDL [Laisenia QARASE]; United General Party or UGP [Millis Mick BEDDOES] | Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; 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; Johannes LEBECH, 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 905,949 (July 2006 est.) | 5,384,384 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25.5% (1990-91) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.4% (2006 est.) | 0.28% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Abenra, Alborg, Arhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 40, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 597 km
narrow gauge: 597 km 0.600-m gauge note: belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation; used to haul sugarcane during harvest season (May to December) (2005) |
total: 3,164 km
standard gauge: 2,324 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified) note:: total includes 840 km of suburban track (2002) |
Religions | Christian 52% (Methodist 37%, Roman Catholic 9%), Hindu 38%, Muslim 8%, other 2%
note: Fijians are mainly Christian, Indians are Hindu, and there is a Muslim minority |
Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio communications center
domestic: NA international: country code - 679; access to important cable links between US and Canada as well as between NZ and Australia; 2 satellite earth stations - 2 INMARSAT (Pacific Ocean) |
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: 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Norway, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Canada; 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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 102,000 (2003) | 4.785 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 142,200 (2004) | 1,444,016 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly mountains of volcanic origin | low and flat to gently rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 2.73 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.73 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.6% (1999) | 5.1% (2002) |
Waterways | 203 km
note: 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2004) |
417 km |