Germany (2007) | Singapore (2003) | |
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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) | none |
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: 17.3% (male 411,656; female 385,575)
15-64 years: 75.5% (male 1,687,217; female 1,793,783) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 144,277; female 186,087) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry | rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs, fish, ornamental fish |
Airports | 550 (2007) | 9 (2002) |
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: 9
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
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) |
- |
Area | total: 357,021 sq km
land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
total: 692.7 sq km
land: 682.7 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | slightly more than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years later and became independent. It subsequently became one of the world's most prosperous countries with strong international trading links (its port is one of the world's busiest) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe. |
Birth rate | 8.2 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.75 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.281 trillion
expenditures: $1.331 trillion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $27.9 billion
expenditures: $19.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.4 billion (FY 00/01 est.) |
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 |
Singapore |
Climate | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind | tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons - Northeastern monsoon from December to March and Southwestern monsoon from June to September; inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early evening thunderstorms |
Coastline | 2,389 km | 193 km |
Constitution | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united Germany 3 October 1990 | 3 June 1959, amended 1965 (based on preindependence State of Singapore Constitution) |
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 Singapore
conventional short form: Singapore |
Currency | - | Singapore dollar (SGD) |
Death rate | 10.71 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.31 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.904 trillion (30 June 2006) | $8.2 billion (2002 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 Franklin L. LAVIN
embassy: 27 Napier Road, Singapore 258508 mailing address: PSC Box 470, FPO AP 96507-0001 telephone: [65] 6476-9100 FAX: [65] 6476-9340 |
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 CHAN Heng Chee
chancery: 3501 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 537-3100 FAX: [1] (202) 537-0876 consulate(s) general: San Francisco consulate(s): New York |
Disputes - international | none | disputes with Malaysia over deliveries of fresh water to Singapore, Singapore's land reclamation works on Johor, maritime boundaries, and Singapore-occupied Pedra Branca Island/Pulau Batu Putih persist - parties agree to ICJ arbitration on island dispute within three years |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
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. | Singapore, a highly developed and successful free market economy, enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in electronics and manufacturing. It was hard hit in 2001-2002 by the global recession and the slump in the technology sector. The government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle than the current export-led model but is unlikely to abandon efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub. |
Electricity - consumption | 545.5 billion kWh (2005) | 28.35 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 61.43 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 56.86 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 579.4 billion kWh (2005) | 30.48 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
lowest point: Singapore Strait 0 m
highest point: Bukit Timah 166 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 | industrial pollution; limited natural fresh water resources; limited land availability presents waste disposal problems; seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
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) | Chinese 76.7%, Malay 14%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) | Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.72 (2000), 1.69 (1999), 1.67 (1998) |
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 Sellapan Rama (S. R.) NATHAN (since 1 September 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister GOH Chok Tong (since 28 November 1990) and Deputy Prime Ministers Brig. Gen. (Ret.) LEE Hsien Loong (since 28 November 1990) and TAN Keng Yam Tony (since 1 August 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, responsible to Parliament elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 28 August 1999 (next to be held by August 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president; deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Sellapan Rama (S. R.) NATHAN elected president unopposed |
Exports | 518,700 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods, chemicals, mineral fuels |
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) | Malaysia 17.4%, US 15.3%, Hong Kong 9.2%, Japan 7.1%, China 5.5%, Taiwan 4.9%, Thailand 4.6%, South Korea 4.2% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $112.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 30% services: 69.1% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: NEGL%
industry: 33% services: 67% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $25,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% (2006 est.) | 2.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 51 00 N, 9 00 E | 1 22 N, 103 48 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea | focal point for Southeast Asian sea routes |
Heliports | 28 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 3,066 km
paved: 3,066 km (including 150 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
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 | as a transportation and financial services hub, Singapore is vulnerable, despite strict laws and enforcement, to be used as a transit point for Golden Triangle heroin and as a venue for money laundering |
Imports | 2.953 million bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals | machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
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) | Malaysia 18.2%, US 14.3%, Japan 12.5%, China 7.6%, Thailand 4.6%, Taiwan 4.6% (2002) |
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 | 9 August 1965 (from Malaysian Federation) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.4% (2006 est.) | -9.8% (2002 est.) |
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 | electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, entrepot trade, biotechnology |
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: 3.57 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.7% (2006 est.) | -0.4% (2002 est.) |
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 | APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, C, CP, ESCAP, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMISET, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 4,850 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) | Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president with the advice of the prime minister, other judges are appointed by the president with the advice of the chief justice); Court of Appeals |
Labor force | 43.57 million (2006 est.) | 2.19 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 33.4% services: 63.8% (1999) |
financial, business, and other services 35%, manufacturing 21%, construction 13%, transportation and communication 9%, other 22% |
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: 1.64%
permanent crops: 0% other: 98.36% (1998 est.) |
Languages | German | Chinese (official), Malay (official and national), Tamil (official), English (official) |
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 English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 |
unicameral Parliament (84 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - in addition, there are up to nine nominated members; the losing opposition candidate who came closest to winning a seat may be appointed as a "nonconstituency" member
elections: last held 3 November 2001 (next to be held 25 June 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PAP 75.3% (in contested constituencies), other 24.7%; seats by party - PAP 82, WP 1, SDA 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.95 years
male: 75.96 years female: 82.11 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 80.42 years
male: 77.46 years female: 83.6 years (2003 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: 93.2% male: 96.7% female: 89.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark | Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia |
Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
exclusive fishing zone: within and beyond territorial sea, as defined in treaties and practice
territorial sea: 3 NM |
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: 859 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 20,836,021 GRT/32,765,063 DWT
ships by type: bulk 125, cargo 85, chemical tanker 87, combination bulk 6, combination ore/oil 8, container 176, liquefied gas 38, livestock carrier 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, petroleum tanker 277, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 12, vehicle carrier 31 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 7, Belgium 6, China 12, Denmark 27, Germany 17, Greece 4, Hong Kong 44, Indonesia 8, Japan 52, Malaysia 4, Monaco 22, Netherlands 2, Norway 42, Philippines 6, Russia 3, Slovenia 1, South Korea 10, Sweden 13, Switzerland 7, Taiwan 46, Tanzania 2, Thailand 22, UAE 4, UK 14, US 1 (2002 est.) |
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) | Army, Navy, Air Force, People's Defense Force, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $4.47 billion (FY01 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (2005 est.) | 4.9% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,392,740 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,012,498 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) | Independence Day, 9 August (1965) |
Nationality | noun: German(s)
adjective: German |
noun: Singaporean(s)
adjective: Singapore |
Natural hazards | flooding | NA |
Natural resources | coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land | fish, deepwater ports |
Net migration rate | 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 25.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 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) | gas 139 km (2003) |
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] | governing party: People's Action Party or PAP [GOH Chok Tong]; opposition parties: Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [leader NA]; National Solidarity Party or NSP [Steve CHIA]; Singapore Democratic Alliance or SDA [CHIAM See Tong] (includes SPP, PKMS, NSP, SJP); Singapore Democratic Party or SDP [CHEE Soon Juan]; Singapore Justice Party or SJP [leader NA]; Singapore National Malay Organization or PKMS [Muhammad ALI Aman]; Singapore People's Party or SPP [CHIAM See Tong]; Workers' Party or WP [LOW Thia Kiang] |
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.) | 4,608,595 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 11% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.033% (2007 est.) | 3.42% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Singapore |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 0, FM 16, shortwave 2 (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: 38.6 km
narrow gauge: 38.6 km 1.000-m gauge note: there is also an 83 km mass transit system with 48 stations |
Religions | Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3% | Buddhist (Chinese), Muslim (Malays), Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Taoist, Confucianist |
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: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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: major consideration given to serving business interests; excellent international service
domestic: excellent domestic facilities international: submarine cables to Malaysia (Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia), Indonesia, and the Philippines; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 54.2 million (2006) | 1.95 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 84.3 million (2006) | 2.74 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) | 6 (2000) |
Terrain | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south | lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water catchment area and nature preserve |
Total fertility rate | 1.4 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.24 children born/woman (2003 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.) |
4.6% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 7,467 km
note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2006) |
none |