Japan (2001) | Madagascar (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gumma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Oita, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tokyo, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi | 6 provinces (faritany); Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
14.64% (male 9,510,296; female 9,043,074) 15-64 years: 67.83% (male 43,202,513; female 42,790,187) 65 years and over: 17.53% (male 9,351,340; female 12,874,252) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 45% (male 3,822,823; female 3,807,958)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 4,366,748; female 4,452,686) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 243,411; female 286,118) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish | coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products |
Airports | 173 (2000 est.) | 121 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
142 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 36 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 30 (2000 est.) |
total: 29
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
31 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 27 (2000 est.) |
total: 92
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 46 under 914 m: 44 (2002) |
Area | total:
377,835 sq km land: 374,744 sq km water: 3,091 sq km note: includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okino-tori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto) |
total: 587,040 sq km
land: 581,540 sq km water: 5,500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than California | slightly less than twice the size of Arizona |
Background | While retaining its time-honored culture, Japan rapidly absorbed Western technology during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. After its devastating defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become the second most powerful economy in the world and a staunch ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives. The economy experienced a major slowdown in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth. | Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1886, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner. |
Birth rate | 10.04 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 42.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$441 billion expenditures: $718 billion, including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $84 billion (FY01/02 est.) |
revenues: $553 million
expenditures: $735 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Tokyo | Antananarivo |
Climate | varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north | tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south |
Coastline | 29,751 km | 4,828 km |
Constitution | 3 May 1947 | 19 August 1992 by national referendum |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Japan |
conventional long form: Republic of Madagascar
conventional short form: Madagascar local long form: Republique de Madagascar local short form: Madagascar former: Malagasy Republic |
Currency | yen (JPY) | Malagasy franc (MGF) |
Death rate | 8.34 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.88 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $4.6 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate Howard H. BAKER, Jr. embassy: 10-5 Akasaka 1-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420 mailing address: Unit 45004, Box 205, APO AP 96337-5004 telephone: [81] (03) 3224-5000 FAX: [81] (03) 3224-5856 consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo consulate(s): Fukuoka, Nagoya |
chief of mission: Ambassador Wanda L. NESBITT
embassy: 14-16 Rue Rainitovo, Antsahavola, Antananarivo 101 mailing address: B. P. 620, Antsahavola, Antananarivo telephone: [261] (20) 22-212-57, 22-212-73, 22-209-56 FAX: [261] (20) 22-345-39 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Shunji YANAI chancery: 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2187 consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Hagatna (Guam), Honolulu, Houston, Kansas City (Missouri), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, and Seattle consulate(s): Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands) |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rajaonarivony NARISOA
chancery: 2374 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-5525, 5526 FAX: [1] (202) 483-7603 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan; Liancourt Rocks (Takeshima/Tokdo) disputed with South Korea; Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands) claimed by China and Taiwan | claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island (all administered by France) |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $9.1 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $838 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) have helped Japan advance with extraordinary rapidity to the rank of second most technologically powerful economy in the world after the US and third largest economy in the world after the US and China. One notable characteristic of the economy is the working together of manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors in closely-knit groups called keiretsu. A second basic feature has been the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force. Both features are now eroding. Industry, the most important sector of the economy, is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The much smaller agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self-sufficient in rice, Japan must import about 50% of its requirements of other grain and fodder crops. Japan maintains one of the world's largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades overall real economic growth had been spectacular: a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed markedly in the 1990s largely because of the aftereffects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets. Government efforts to revive economic growth have met little success and were further hampered in late 2000 by the slowing of the US and Asian economies. The crowding of habitable land area and the aging of the population are two major long-run problems. Robotics constitutes a key long-term economic strength, with Japan possessing 410,000 of the world's 720,000 "working robots". | Having discarded past socialist economic policies, Madagascar has since the mid 1990s followed a World Bank and IMF led policy of privatization and liberalization, which has placed the country on a slow and steady growth path. Agriculture, including fishing and forestry, is a mainstay of the economy, accounting for one-fourth of GDP and employing four-fifths of the population. Export earnings primarily are earned in the small industrial sector, which features textile manufacturing and agriculture processing. Deforestation and erosion, aggravated by the use of firewood as the primary source of fuel are serious concerns. The separatist political crisis of 2002 undermined macroeconomic stability, with the estimated drop in output being subject to a wide margin of error. Poverty reduction will be the centerpiece of economic policy for the next few years. |
Electricity - consumption | 947.038 billion kWh (1999) | 772.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.018 trillion kWh (1999) | 830.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
58.91% hydro: 8.35% nuclear: 30.31% other: 2.43% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 36.1%
hydro: 63.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Hachiro-gata -4 m highest point: Fujiyama 3,776 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Maromokotro 2,876 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber, contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere | soil erosion results from deforestation and overgrazing; desertification; surface water contaminated with raw sewage and other organic wastes; several species of flora and fauna unique to the island are endangered |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Japanese 99.4%, Korean 0.6% (1999) | Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran |
Exchange rates | yen per US dollar - 117.10 (January 2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), 130.91 (1998), 120.99 (1997), 108.78 (1996) | Malagasy francs per US dollar - 6,831.96 (2002), 6,588.49 (2001), 6,767.48 (2000), 6,283.77 (1999), 5,441.4 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Junichiro KOIZUMI (since 24 April 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the Diet designates the prime minister; the constitution requires that the prime minister must command a parliamentary majority, therefore, following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition in the House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister note: following the resignation of Prime Minister Yoshiro MORI, Junichiro KOIZUMI was elected as the new president of the majority Liberal Democratic Party, and soon thereafter designated by the Diet to become the next prime minister |
chief of state: President Marc RAVALOMANANA (since 6 May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Jacques SYLLA (27 May 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held NA November 2006); prime minister appointed by the president from a list of candidates nominated by the National Assembly election results: percent of vote - Didier RATSIRAKA (AREMA) 40.89%, Marc RAVALOMANANA 46.21%; note - on 29 April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner by 51.5% after a recount; RATSIRIKA's prime minister was put under house arrest on 27 May 2002, and SYLLA was appointed the new prime minister by President RAVALOMANANA |
Exports | $450 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | motor vehicles, semiconductors, office machinery, chemicals | coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar; cotton cloth, chromite, petroleum products |
Exports - partners | US 30%, Taiwan 7%, South Korea 6.4%, China 6.2%, Hong Kong 5.6% (2000 est.) | France 34%, US 24.6%, Netherlands 6%, Germany 5.9%, Mauritius 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a vertical white band of the same width on hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.15 trillion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12.59 billion (2002) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2% industry: 35% services: 63% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 25%
industry: 12% services: 63% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.3% (2000 est.) | -11.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 36 00 N, 138 00 E | 20 00 S, 47 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location in northeast Asia | world's fourth-largest island; strategic location along Mozambique Channel |
Heliports | 16 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
1,152,207 km paved: 863,003 km (including 6,114 km of expressways) unpaved: 289,204 km (1997 est.) |
total: 49,827 km
paved: 5,780 km unpaved: 44,047 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
4.8% highest 10%: 21.7% (1993) |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29% (1999) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin |
Imports | $355 billion (c.i.f., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, office machinery | capital goods, petroleum, consumer goods, food |
Imports - partners | US 19%, China 14.5%, South Korea 5.4%, Taiwan 4.8%, Indonesia 4.3%, Australia 3.9% (2000 est.) | France 17.2%, Iran 11%, Mauritius 10.6%, Bahrain 9.4%, Hong Kong 6.9%, South Africa 5.9%, China 4.1% (2002) |
Independence | 660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu) | 26 June 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.3% (2000 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals; textiles, processed foods | meat processing, soap, breweries, tanneries, sugar, textiles, glassware, cement, automobile assembly plant, paper, petroleum, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 3.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 80.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 88.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 71.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.7% (2000 est.) | 7.4% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNRWA, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 73 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 27,820 sq km (1993 est.) | 10,900 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet) | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Court or Haute Cour Constitutionnelle |
Labor force | 67.7 million (December 2000) | 7.3 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 65%, industry 30%, agriculture 5% | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
11% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 2% forests and woodland: 67% other: 19% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 4.41%
permanent crops: 0.93% other: 94.66% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Japanese | French (official), Malagasy (official) |
Legal system | modeled after European civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on French civil law system and traditional Malagasy law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (252 seats; one-half of the members elected every three years - 76 seats of which are elected from the 47 multi-seat prefectural districts and 50 of which are elected from a single nationwide list; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - 180 of which are elected from 11 regional blocks on a proportional representation basis and 300 of which are elected from 300 single-seat districts; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Councillors - last held 12 July 1998 (next to be held NA July 2001); House of Representatives - last held 25 June 2000 (next to be held by June 2004) election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LDP 102, DPJ 47, JCP 23, Komeito 22, SDP 13, Liberal Party 12, independents 26, others 7; note - the distribution of seats as of February 2001 is as follows - LDP 112, DPJ 58, Komeito 24, JCP 23, SDP 13, Liberal Party 5, independents 7, others 10; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LDP 233, DPJ 127, Komeito 31, Liberal Party 22, JCP 20, SDP 19, other 28; note - the distribution of seats as of February 2001 is as follows - LDP 239, DPJ 129, Komeito 31, Liberal Party 22, JCP 20, SDP 19, other 20 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (160 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - the legislature is scheduled to become a bicameral Parliament with the establishment of a Senate; two-thirds of the seats of this Senate will be filled by regional assemblies whose members will be elected by popular vote; the remaining one-third of the seats will be appointed by the president; the total number of seats will be determined by the National Assembly; all members will serve four-year terms
elections: National Assembly - last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - TIM 103, FP 22, AREMA 3, LEADER/Fanilo 2, RPSD 5, others 3, independents 22 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
80.8 years male: 77.62 years female: 84.15 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 56.14 years
male: 53.82 years female: 58.53 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1970 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68.9% male: 75.5% female: 62.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Mozambique |
Map references | Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM; between 3 NM and 12 NM in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or 100 NM from the 2,500-m deep isobath exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
630 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 11,691,174 GRT/15,484,848 DWT ships by type: bulk 137, cargo 51, chemical tanker 15, combination bulk 22, combination ore/oil 3, container 22, liquefied gas 49, passenger 9, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 194, refrigerated cargo 15, roll on/roll off 49, short-sea passenger 6, vehicle carrier 56 (2000 est.) |
total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 14,865 GRT/17,936 DWT
ships by type: cargo 8, chemical tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), Japan Air Self-Defense Force (Air Force) | People's Armed Forces (comprising Intervention Force, Development Force, Aeronaval [Navy and Air] Force), Gendarmerie, Presidential Security Regiment |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $43 billion (FY01) | $52.3 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.96% (FY01) | 1.2% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
29,926,614 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 3,880,332 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
25,876,484 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,300,587 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
765,817 (2001 est.) |
males: 163,864 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933) | Independence Day, 26 June (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese |
noun: Malagasy (singular and plural)
adjective: Malagasy |
Natural hazards | many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons | periodic cyclones |
Natural resources | negligible mineral resources, fish | graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semiprecious stones, mica, fish, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 84 km; petroleum products 322 km; natural gas 1,800 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Yukio HATOYAMA, leader, Naoto KAN, secretary general]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII, chairman, Tadaaki ICHIDA, secretary general]; Komeito [Takenori KANZAKI, president, Tetsuzo FUYUSHIBA, secretary general]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Junichiro KOIZUMI, president, Taku YAMASAKI, secretary general]; Liberal Party [Ichiro OZAWA, president, Hirohisa FUJII, secretary general]; New Conservative Party [Chikage OGI, president, Takeshi NODA, secretary general]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Takako DOI, chairperson, Sadao FUCHIGAMI, secretary general] | Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar or AREMA [leader vacant]; Economic Liberalism and Democratic Action for National Recovery or LEADER/Fanilo [Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO]; I Love Madagascar or TIM [leader NA]; National Union or FP [leader NA]; Renewal of the Social Democratic Party or RPSD [Evariste MARSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Federalist Movement; National Council of Christian Churches or FFKM |
Population | 126,771,662 (July 2001 est.) | 16,979,744 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 71% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.17% (2001 est.) | 3.03% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Akita, Amagasaki, Chiba, Hachinohe, Hakodate, Higashi-Harima, Himeji, Hiroshima, Kawasaki, Kinuura, Kobe, Kushiro, Mizushima, Moji, Nagoya, Osaka, Sakai, Sakaide, Shimizu, Tokyo, Tomakomai | Antsiranana, Antsohimbondrona, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 190, FM 88, shortwave 24 (1999) | AM 2 (plus a number of repeater stations), FM 9, shortwave 6 (2001) |
Radios | 120.5 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
23,670.7 km standard gauge: 2,893.1 km 1.435-m gauge (entirely electrified) narrow gauge: 89.8 km 1.372-m gauge (89.8 km electrified); 20,656.8 km 1.067-m gauge (10,383.6 km electrified); 31 km 0.762-m gauge (3.6 km electrified) (1994) |
total: 732 km
narrow gauge: 732 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%) | indigenous beliefs 52%, Christian 41%, Muslim 7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
excellent domestic and international service domestic: high level of modern technology and excellent service of every kind international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); submarine cables to China, Philippines, Russia, and US (via Guam) (1999) |
general assessment: system is above average for the region
domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter links connect regions international: submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 60.381 million (1997) | 55,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 63.88 million (2000) | 63,100 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 7,108 (plus 441 repeaters; note - in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services) (1999) | 1 (plus 36 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous | narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center |
Total fertility rate | 1.41 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.73 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.7% (2000) | 5.9% (1998) |
Waterways | 1,770 km approximately
note: seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas |
of local importance only |