Germany (2007) | Fiji (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern (Bavaria), Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony), Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia), Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate), Saarland, Sachsen (Saxony), Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen (Thuringia); note - Bayern, Sachsen, and Thueringen refer to themselves as free states (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat) | 4 divisions and 1 dependency*; Central, Eastern, Northern, Rotuma*, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 13.9% (male 5,894,724/female 5,590,373)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 27,811,357/female 26,790,222) 65 years and over: 19.8% (male 6,771,972/female 9,542,348) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.9% (male 144,665/female 138,816)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 297,709/female 296,897) 65 years and over: 4.4% (male 18,397/female 22,191) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry | sugarcane, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; cattle, pigs, horses, goats; fish |
Airports | 550 (2007) | 28 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 331
over 3,047 m: 14 2,438 to 3,047 m: 52 1,524 to 2,437 m: 58 914 to 1,523 m: 72 under 914 m: 135 (2007) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 219
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 181 (2007) |
total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 18 (2007) |
Area | total: 357,021 sq km
land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
total: 18,270 sq km
land: 18,270 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | As Europe's largest economy and second most populous nation, Germany is a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency, the euro. | 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. Re-elected in May 2006, QARASE was ousted in a December 2006 military coup led by Commodore Voreqe BAINIMARAMA, who initially appointed himself acting president. In January 2007, BAINIMARAMA was appointed interim prime minister. |
Birth rate | 8.2 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 22.37 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.281 trillion
expenditures: $1.331 trillion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $720.5 million
expenditures: $728.3 million (2005) |
Capital | name: Berlin
geographic coordinates: 52 31 N, 13 24 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 |
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) |
Climate | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind | tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 2,389 km | 1,129 km |
Constitution | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united Germany 3 October 1990 | enacted on 25 July 1997 to encourage multiculturalism and make multiparty government mandatory; effective 28 July 1998 |
Country name | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich |
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 |
Death rate | 10.71 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.66 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.904 trillion (30 June 2006) | $127 million (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William R. TIMKEN, Jr.
embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin; ground was broken in October 2004 and completion is scheduled for 2008 mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265 telephone: [49] (030) 2375174 FAX: [49] (030) 8305-1215 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Klaus SCHARIOTH
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Penijamini R. LOMALOMA
chancery: 2000 M Street, NW, Suite 710, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 466-8320 FAX: [1] (202) 466-8325 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $63.96 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy - the fifth largest in the world in PPP terms - showed considerable improvement in 2006 with 2.2% growth. After a long period of stagnation with an average growth rate of 0.7% between 2001-05 and chronically high unemployment, stronger growth has led to a considerable fall in unemployment to about 7% at the end of 2006. Among the most important reasons for Germany's high unemployment during the past decade were macroeconomic stagnation, the declining level of investment in plant and equipment, company restructuring, flat domestic consumption, structural rigidities in the labor market, lack of competition in the service sector, and high interest rates. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term process, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $80 billion. The former government of Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER launched a comprehensive set of reforms of labor market and welfare-related institutions. The current government of Chancellor Angela MERKEL has initiated other reform measures, such as a gradual increase in the mandatory retirement age from 65 to 67 and measures to increase female participation in the labor market. Germany's aging population, combined with high chronic unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions, but higher government revenues from the cyclical upturn in 2006 reduced Germany's budget deficit to within the EU's 3% debt limit. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could help Germany meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization. | 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. Fiji's tourism industry was damaged by the December 2006 coup and is facing an uncertain recovery time. The coup has created a difficult business climate. Tourist arrivals for 2007 are estimated to be down almost 6%, with substantial job losses in the service sector. In July 2007 the Reserve Bank of Fiji announced the economy was expected to contract by 3.1% in 2007. Fiji's current account deficit reached 23% of GDP in 2006. The EU has suspended all aid until the interim government takes steps toward new elections. Long-term problems include low investment, uncertain land ownership rights, and the government's inability to manage its budget. Overseas remittances from Fijians working in Kuwait and Iraq have increased significantly. |
Electricity - consumption | 545.5 billion kWh (2005) | 972.8 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 61.43 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 56.86 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 579.4 billion kWh (2005) | 1.046 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tomanivi 1,324 m |
Environment - current issues | emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive | deforestation; soil erosion |
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-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish) | Fijian 54.8% (predominantly Melanesian with a Polynesian admixture), Indian 37.4%, other 7.9% (European, other Pacific Islanders, Chinese) (2005 estimate) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) | Fijian dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 1.7313 (2006), 1.691 (2005), 1.7331 (2004), 1.8958 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004)
head of government: Chancellor Angela MERKEL (since 22 November 2005) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term (eligible for a second term) by a Federal Convention, including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; Bundestag election last held 22 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2009) election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Angela MERKEL elected chancellor; vote by Federal Assembly 397 to 202 with 12 abstentions |
chief of state: President Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda (since 18 July 2000); note - ILOILOVATU was reaffirmed as president by the Great Council of Chiefs in a statement issued on 22 December, and reappointed by the coup leader Commodore Voreqe BAINIMARAMA in January 2007
head of government: Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE (since 10 September 2000); note - although QARASE is still the legal prime minister, he has been confined to his home island; the president appointed Commodore Voreqe BAINIMARAMA interim prime minister under the military regime cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister from among the members of Parliament and is responsible to Parliament; note - coup leader Commodore Voreqe BAINIMARAMA has appointed an interim cabinet 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 election results: Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda elected president by the Great Council of Chiefs; percent of vote - NA |
Exports | 518,700 bbl/day (2004) | 2,268 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles | sugar, garments, gold, timber, fish, molasses, coconut oil |
Exports - partners | France 9.7%, US 8.6%, UK 7.3%, Italy 6.7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Belgium 5.5%, Austria 5.5%, Spain 4.7% (2006) | US 16.8%, Australia 13.9%, UK 13.5%, Japan 5.3%, Samoa 4.7%, Tonga 4.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold | 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 |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 30% services: 69.1% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 13.5% services: 77.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% (2006 est.) | -3.1% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 51 00 N, 9 00 E | 18 00 S, 175 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea | includes 332 islands; approximately 110 are inhabited |
Heliports | 28 (2007) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 22.1% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs; major financial center | - |
Imports | 2.953 million bbl/day (2004) | 10,870 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals | manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Netherlands 11.7%, France 8.7%, Belgium 7.6%, UK 5.9%, China 5.9%, Italy 5.5%, US 5.1%, Austria 4.3%, Russia 4% (2006) | Singapore 28.8%, Australia 23.3%, NZ 16.8%, China 4.7% (2006) |
Independence | 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991 | 10 October 1970 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.4% (2006 est.) | NA% |
Industries | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages, shipbuilding, textiles | tourism, sugar, clothing, copra, gold, silver, lumber, small cottage industries |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.08 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 11.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.7% (2006 est.) | 3% (2005) |
International organization participation | AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | ACP, ADB, C (suspended), CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, OPCW, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 4,850 sq km (2003) | 30 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeal; High Court; Magistrates' Courts |
Labor force | 43.57 million (2006 est.) | 137,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 33.4% services: 63.8% (1999) |
agriculture: 70%
industry and services: 30% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 33.13%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 66.27% (2005) |
arable land: 10.95%
permanent crops: 4.65% other: 84.4% (2005) |
Languages | German | English (official), Fijian (official), Hindustani |
Legal system | civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on British system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (614 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain proportional representation and caucus recognition; to serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has three to six votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly - last held on 18 September 2005 (next to be held in September 2009); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 35.2%, SPD 34.3%, FDP 9.8%, Left 8.7%, Greens 8.1%, other 3.9%; seats by party - CDU/CSU 225, SPD 222, FDP 61, Left 53, Greens 51, and independents 2 |
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 6-13 May 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - SDL 44.6%, FLP 39.2%, UPP 0.8%, independents 4.9%, other 10.5%; seats by party - SDL 36, FLP 31, UPP 2, independents 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.95 years
male: 75.96 years female: 82.11 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 70.12 years
male: 67.6 years female: 72.76 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 95.5% female: 91.9% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark | Oceania, island group in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
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 |
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 |
Merchant marine | total: 382 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,085,484 GRT/14,261,476 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 50, chemical tanker 11, container 269, liquefied gas 5, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 26, petroleum tanker 12, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 7 (China 2, Finland 4, Ireland 1) registered in other countries: 2,716 (Antigua and Barbuda 891, Australia 2, Bahamas 40, Belgium 1, Bermuda 21, Brazil 7, Bulgaria 1, Burma 5, Canada 3, Cayman Islands 17, Cyprus 197, Denmark 12, Faroe Islands 1, Finland 2, France 1, Georgia 2, Gibraltar 117, Hong Kong 10, Isle of Man 61, Italy 1, Jamaica 1, Liberia 728, Luxembourg 10, Malaysia 2, Malta 67, Marshall Islands 214, Morocco 1, Netherlands 70, Netherlands Antilles 48, Norway 2, NZ 1, Panama 38, Portugal 22, Russia 2, Singapore 18, Spain 9, Sri Lanka 6, St Vincent and The Grenadines 3, Sweden 4, Turkey 1, UK 71, US 6) (2007) |
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 17,376 GRT/8,788 DWT
by type: passenger 3, passenger/cargo 3, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Australia 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr): Army (Heer), Navy (Deutsche Marine, includes naval air arm), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Joint Service Support Command (Streitkraeftebasis), Central Medical Service (Zentraler Sanitaetsdienst) (2006) | Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF): Land Forces, Naval Forces (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (2005 est.) | 2.2% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) | Independence Day, second Monday of October (1970) |
Nationality | noun: German(s)
adjective: German |
noun: Fijian(s)
adjective: Fijian |
Natural hazards | flooding | cyclonic storms can occur from November to January |
Natural resources | coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land | timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil potential, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
People - note | second most populous country in Europe after Russia | - |
Pipelines | condensate 37 km; gas 25,035 km; oil 3,546 km; refined products 3,827 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance '90/Greens [Claudia ROTH and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE]; Left Party.PDS (Linkspartei.PDS) [Lothar BISKY]; note - a merger with the Electoral Alternative-Work and Social Justice or WASG [Klaus ERNST] is planned for summer 2007; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Kurt BECK] | 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 Peoples Party or UPP [Millis Mick BEDDOES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | business associations and employers' organizations; religious, trade unions, immigrant, expellee, and veterans groups | NA |
Population | 82,400,996 (July 2007 est.) | 918,675 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 11% (2001 est.) | 25.5% (FY90/91) |
Population growth rate | -0.033% (2007 est.) | 1.394% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 13, FM 40, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 48,215 km
standard gauge: 47,962 km 1.435-m gauge (20,278 km electrified) narrow gauge: 229 km 1.000-m gauge (16 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2006) |
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) (2006) |
Religions | Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3% | Christian 53% (Methodist 34.5%, Roman Catholic 7.2%, Assembly of God 3.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 2.6%, other 4.9%), Hindu 34% (Sanatan 25%, Arya Samaj 1.2%, other 7.8%), Muslim 7% (Sunni 4.2%. other 2.8%), other or unspecified 5.6%, none 0.3% (1996 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.054 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.966 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.042 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.003 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.829 male(s)/female total population: 1.006 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat, Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems (2001) |
general assessment: modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio communications center
domestic: telephone or radio telephone links to almost all inhabited islands; most towns and large villages have automatic telephone exchanges and direct dialing; combined fixed and mobile-cellular density is about 35 per 100 persons international: country code - 679; access to important cable links between US and Canada as well as between NZ and Australia; satellite earth stations - 2 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 54.2 million (2006) | 112,500 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 84.3 million (2006) | 205,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) | NA |
Terrain | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south | mostly mountains of volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 1.4 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.7 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.1%
note: this is the International Labor Organization's estimated rate for international comparisons; Germany's Federal Employment Office estimated a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.8% (2006 est.) |
7.6% (1999) |
Waterways | 7,467 km
note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2006) |
203 km
note: 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2006) |