Greenland (2006) | Zimbabwe (2005) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 24.5% (male 7,072/female 6,740)
15-64 years: 68.9% (male 20,904/female 17,919) 65 years and over: 6.6% (male 1,768/female 1,958) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.2% (male 2,522,609/female 2,474,131)
15-64 years: 57.1% (male 3,686,354/female 3,592,662) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 235,478/female 235,756) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish | corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; sheep, goats, pigs |
Airports | 14 (2006) | 404 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2006) |
total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 8 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
total: 387
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 186 under 914 m: 196 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
total: 390,580 sq km
land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of Texas | slightly larger than Montana |
Background | Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute over stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament. The law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs. | The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated that favored whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded more complete voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence. His chaotic land redistribution campaign begun in 2000 caused an exodus of white farmers, crippled the economy, and ushered in widespread shortages of basic commodities. Ignoring international condemnation, MUGABE rigged the 2002 presidential election to ensure his reelection. Opposition and labor groups launched general strikes in 2003 to pressure MUGABE to retire early; security forces continued their brutal repression of regime opponents. |
Birth rate | 15.93 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 29.74 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $646 million
expenditures: $629 million; including capital expenditures of $85 million (1999) |
revenues: $1.325 billion
expenditures: $1.593 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | name: Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates: 64 11 N, 51 44 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Greenland is divided into four time zones |
Harare |
Climate | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters | tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March) |
Coastline | 44,087 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) | 21 December 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
conventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe
conventional short form: Zimbabwe former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia |
Death rate | 7.84 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 24.66 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $25 million (1999) | $4.086 billion (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph G. SULLIVAN
embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 and 250-594 FAX: [263] (4) 796488 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) | chief of mission: Ambassador Simbi Veke MUBAKO
chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326 |
Disputes - international | managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland | Botswana has built electric fences and South Africa has placed military along the border to stem the flow of thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing to find work and escape political persecution; Namibia has supported and in 2004 Zimbabwe dropped objections to plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river |
Economic aid - recipient | $380 million subsidy from Denmark (1997) | $178 million; note - the EU and the US provide food aid on humanitarian grounds (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Despite several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities, it will take a number of years before production can materialize. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. | The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles with an unsustainable fiscal deficit, an overvalued exchange rate, soaring inflation, and bare shelves. Its 1998-2002 involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. Badly needed support from the IMF has been suspended because of the country's failure to meet budgetary goals. Inflation rose from an annual rate of 32% in 1998 to 133% at the end of 2004, while the exchange rate fell from 24 Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar to 6,200 in the same time period. The government's land reform program, characterized by chaos and violence, has badly damaged the commercial farming sector, the traditional source of exports and foreign exchange and the provider of 400,000 jobs. |
Electricity - consumption | 225.3 million kWh (2003) | 11.22 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 3 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 242.2 million kWh (2003) | 8.839 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m |
lowest point: junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m
highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m |
Environment - current issues | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting | deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd - once the largest concentration of the species in the world - has been significantly reduced by poaching; poor mining practices have led to toxic waste and heavy metal pollution |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000) | African 98% (Shona 82%, Ndebele 14%, other 2%), mixed and Asian 1%, white less than 1% |
Exchange rates | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001) | Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar - 4,303.28 (2004), 697.424 (2003), 55.036 (2002), 55.052 (2001), 44.418 (2000)
note: these are official exchange rates, non-official rates vary significantly |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Soren MOLLER (since April 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election last held 3 December 2002 (next to be held December 2006) election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
chief of state: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice President Joyce MUJURU (since 6 December 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice President Joyce MUJURU (since 6 December 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly elections: presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote for a 6-year term; election last held 9-11 March 2002 (next to be held March 2008); co-vice presidents appointed by the president election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 56.2%, Morgan TSVANGIRAI 41.9% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA |
Exports - commodities | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) | cotton, tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, textiles/clothing |
Exports - partners | Denmark 62.5%, Japan 12.3%, China 5.3% (2005) | South Africa 31.5%, Switzerland 7.4%, UK 7.3%, China 6.1%, Germany 4.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white | seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green symbolizes agriculture, yellow - mineral wealth, red - blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 18.1%
industry: 24.3% services: 57.7% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.8% (2001 est.) | -8.2% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 72 00 N, 40 00 W | 20 00 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap | landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zambia; in full flood (February-April) the massive Victoria Falls on the river forms the world's largest curtain of falling water |
Highways | - | total: 18,338 km
paved: 8,692 km unpaved: 9,646 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.97%
highest 10%: 40.42% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European markets |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products | machinery and transport equipment, other manufactures, chemicals, fuels |
Imports - partners | Denmark 66.8%, Sweden 19.3%, Ireland 3.6% (2005) | South Africa 46.9%, Botswana 3.6%, UK 3.4% (2004) |
Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) | 18 April 1980 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -7.8% (2004 est.) |
Industries | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards | mining (coal, gold, platinum, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel, wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 15.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 67.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 70.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.6% (1999 est.) | 133% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU | ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 1,170 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) | Supreme Court; High Court |
Labor force | 24,500 (1999 est.) | 4.23 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 66%, industry 10%, services 24% (1996) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 3,066 km
border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 8.32%
permanent crops: 0.34% other: 91.34% (2001) |
Languages | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English | English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects |
Legal system | Danish | mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 15 November 2005 (next to be held by December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 30.7%, Demokratiit 22.8%, Inuit Ataqatigiit 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, Inuit Ataqatigiit 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
unicameral House of Assembly (150 seats - 120 elected by popular vote for five-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors appointed by the president)
elections: last held 31 March 2005 (next to be held NA 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 59.6%, MDC 39.5%, other 0.9%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 78, MDC 41, Independents 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.94 years
male: 66.36 years female: 73.6 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 39.13 years
male: 40.2 years female: 38.03 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2001 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write English
total population: 90.7% male: 94.2% female: 87.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada | Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia |
Map references | Arctic Region | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,540 GRT/2,540 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 2 registered in other countries: 2 (Cyprus 1, Denmark 1) (2006) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Denmark | - |
Military branches | - | Zimbabwe Defense Forces (ZDF): Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ), Zimbabwe Republic Police (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $217 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 4.3% (2004) |
National holiday | June 21 (longest day) | Independence Day, 18 April (1980) |
Nationality | noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
noun: Zimbabwean(s)
adjective: Zimbabwean |
Natural hazards | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island | recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare |
Natural resources | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas | coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals |
Net migration rate | -8.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population negligible migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | refined products 261 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Atassut Party (Solidarity, a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark) [Finn KARLSEN]; Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood, a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule) [Josef MOTZFELDT]; Issituup (Polar Party) [Nicolai HEINRICH]; Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List, an independent right-of-center party with no official platform; Siumut (Forward Party, a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) [Hans ENOKSEN] | Movement for Democratic Change or MDC [Morgan TSVANGIRAI]; National Alliance for Good Governance or NAGG [Shakespeare MAYA]; United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Wilson KUMBULA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert Gabriel MUGABE]; Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU [Agrippa MADLELA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | National Constitutional Assembly or NCA [Lovemore MADHUKU]; Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition [Brian KAGORO]; Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions or ZCTU [Lovemore MATOMBO] |
Population | 56,361 (July 2006 est.) | 12,746,990
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 70% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.03% (2006 est.) | 0.51% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Binga, Kariba |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 3,077 km
narrow gauge: 3,077 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified) (2004) |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran | syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: country code - 299; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: system was once one of the best in Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100,000 outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number of installed but unused main lines
domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines, radiotelephone communication stations, fixed wireless local loop installations, and a substantial mobile cellular network; Internet connection is available in Harare and planned for all major towns and for some of the smaller ones international: country code - 263; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat; two international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and Gweru) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25,300 (2002) | 300,900 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 32,200 (2004) | 379,100 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations, and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997) | 16 (1997) |
Terrain | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast | mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 2.4 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.54 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2000 est.) | 70% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | on Lake Kariba, length small (2003) |