Japan (2001) | Malta (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 | none (administered directly from Valletta); note - Local Councils carry out administrative orders |
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: 19.5% (male 40,448; female 37,623)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 136,221; female 134,142) 65 years and over: 13% (male 21,730; female 30,256) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish | potatoes, cauliflower, grapes, wheat, barley, tomatoes, citrus, cut flowers, green peppers; pork, milk, poultry, eggs |
Airports | 173 (2000 est.) | 1 (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: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
31 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 27 (2000 est.) |
- |
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: 316 sq km
land: 316 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than California | slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Great Britain formally acquired possession of Malta in 1814. The island staunchly supported the UK through both World Wars and remained in the Commonwealth when it became independent in 1964. A decade later Malta became a republic. Since about the mid-1980s, the island has become a freight transshipment point, financial center, and tourist destination. It is an official candidate for EU membership. |
Birth rate | 10.04 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.75 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: $1.5 billion
expenditures: $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000) |
Capital | Tokyo | Valletta |
Climate | varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north | Mediterranean with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 29,751 km | 196.8 km (does not include 56.01 km for the island of Gozo) |
Constitution | 3 May 1947 | 1964 constitution substantially amended on 13 December 1974 and again in 1987 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Japan |
conventional long form: Republic of Malta
conventional short form: Malta local long form: Repubblika ta' Malta local short form: Malta |
Currency | yen (JPY) | Maltese lira (MTL) |
Death rate | 8.34 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.8 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $130 million (1997) |
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 Anthony H. GIOIA
embassy: 3rd Floor, Development House, Saint Anne Street, Floriana, Malta VLT 01 mailing address: P. O. Box 535, Valletta, Malta telephone: [356] 21-235-960 FAX: [356] 2124-3229 |
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 John LOWELL
chancery: 2017 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3611, 3612 FAX: [1] (202) 387-5470 consulate(s): 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 | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $9.1 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
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". | Major resources are limestone, a favorable geographic location, and a productive labor force. Malta produces only about 20% of its food needs, has limited fresh water supplies, and has no domestic energy sources. The economy is dependent on foreign trade, manufacturing (especially electronics and textiles), and tourism. Malta is privatizing state-controlled firms and liberalizing markets in order to prepare for membership in the European Union. The island remains divided politically, however, over the question of joining the EU. Continued sluggishness in the global economy is holding back exports, tourism, and overall growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 947.038 billion kWh (1999) | 1.644 billion 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) | 1.768 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
58.91% hydro: 8.35% nuclear: 30.31% other: 2.43% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Hachiro-gata -4 m highest point: Fujiyama 3,776 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Ta'Dmejrek 253 m (near Dingli) |
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 | very limited natural fresh water resources; increasing reliance on desalination |
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: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Japanese 99.4%, Korean 0.6% (1999) | Maltese (descendants of ancient Carthaginians and Phoenicians, with strong elements of Italian and other Mediterranean stock) |
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) | Maltese liri per US dollar - 0.43 (2002), 0.45 (2001), 0.44 (2000), 0.4 (1999), 0.39 (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 Guido DE MARCO (since 4 April 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Eddie FENECH ADAMI (since 6 September 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence GONZI (since 4 April 1999) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by the House of Representatives for a five-year term; election last held NA April 1999 (next to be held by April 2004); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president for a five-year term; the deputy prime minister is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister election results: Guido DE MARCO elected president; percent of House of Representatives vote - 54% |
Exports | $450 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | motor vehicles, semiconductors, office machinery, chemicals | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures |
Exports - partners | US 30%, Taiwan 7%, South Korea 6.4%, China 6.2%, Hong Kong 5.6% (2000 est.) | Singapore 17.3%, US 11.4%, UK 9.4%, Germany 9%, France 7.2%, China 6.5%, Italy 6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center | two equal vertical bands of white (hoist side) and red; in the upper hoist-side corner is a representation of the George Cross, edged in red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.15 trillion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6.818 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2% industry: 35% services: 63% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 25.5% services: 71.7% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.3% (2000 est.) | 1.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 36 00 N, 138 00 E | 35 50 N, 14 35 E |
Geography - note | strategic location in northeast Asia | the country comprises an archipelago, with only the three largest islands (Malta, Ghawdex or Gozo, and Kemmuna or Comino) being inhabited; numerous bays provide good harbors; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration |
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: 2,254 km
paved: 1,972 km unpaved: 282 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
4.8% highest 10%: 21.7% (1993) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | minor transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Western Europe |
Imports | $355 billion (c.i.f., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, office machinery | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured and semi-manufactured goods; food, drink, and tobacco |
Imports - partners | US 19%, China 14.5%, South Korea 5.4%, Taiwan 4.8%, Indonesia 4.3%, Australia 3.9% (2000 est.) | Italy 18.3%, France 12.1%, South Korea 11.3%, UK 7.5%, Singapore 5.3%, Germany 5.2%, Japan 5%, US 4.6%, Spain 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu) | 21 September 1964 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.3% (2000 est.) | NA% |
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 | tourism; electronics, ship building and repair, construction; food and beverages, textiles, footwear, clothing, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | 3.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.7% (2000 est.) | 2.4% (2002 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 | C, CE, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 73 (2000) | 6 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 27,820 sq km (1993 est.) | 20 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) | Constitutional Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister |
Labor force | 67.7 million (December 2000) | 160,000 (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 65%, industry 30%, agriculture 5% | industry 24%, services 71%, agriculture 5% (1999 est.) |
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: 31.25%
permanent crops: 3.13% other: 65.62% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Japanese | Maltese (official), English (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 English common law and Roman civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 House of Representatives (usually 65 seats; note - additional seats are given to the party with the largest popular vote to ensure a legislative majority; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held by April 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PN 51.7%, MLP 47.6%, AD 0.7%; seats by party - PN 34, MLP 31 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
80.8 years male: 77.62 years female: 84.15 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.43 years
male: 75.94 years female: 81.14 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1970 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 92.8% male: 92% female: 93.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula | Southern Europe, islands in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily (Italy) |
Map references | Asia | Europe |
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-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 25 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: 1,234 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 25,885,128 GRT/42,467,864 DWT
ships by type: bulk 459, cargo 280, chemical tanker 45, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 10, container 80, liquefied gas 3, livestock carrier 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 236, refrigerated cargo 37, roll on/roll off 41, short-sea passenger 7, vehicle carrier 15 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 4, Austria 6, Bangladesh 1, Belgium 3, Bulgaria 19, Canada 2, China 16, Croatia 14, Cuba 1, Cyprus 7, Denmark 3, Estonia 5, Finland 1, Germany 54, Greece 627, Hong Kong 12, Iceland 3, India 10, Iran 2, Israel 26, Italy 36, Japan 2, Latvia 24, Lebanon 6, Monaco 29, Netherlands 10, Nigeria 2, Norway 43, Poland 29, Portugal 2, Romania 15, Russia 85, Saudi Arabia 1, Slovenia 2, South Korea 5, Spain 1, Switzerland 54, Syria 4, Turkey 84, Ukraine 25, UAE 3, UK 4, US 10 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), Japan Air Self-Defense Force (Air Force) | Armed Forces (including land forces [with subordinate air squadron and maritime squadron] and the Revenue Security Corps), Maltese Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $43 billion (FY01) | $60 million (2000 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.96% (FY01) | 1.7% (2000) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
29,926,614 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 99,312 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
25,876,484 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 79,080 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
765,817 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933) | Independence Day, 21 September (1964) |
Nationality | noun:
Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese |
noun: Maltese (singular and plural)
adjective: Maltese |
Natural hazards | many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons | NA |
Natural resources | negligible mineral resources, fish | limestone, salt, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.34 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] | Alternativa Demokratika/Alliance for Social Justice or AD [Harry VASSALLO]; Malta Labor Party or MLP [Alfred SANT]; Nationalist Party or PN [Edward FENECH ADAMI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 126,771,662 (July 2001 est.) | 400,420 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.17% (2001 est.) | 0.73% (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 | Marsaxlokk, Valletta |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 190, FM 88, shortwave 24 (1999) | AM 1, FM 18, shortwave 6 (1999) |
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) |
0 km |
Religions | observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%) | Roman Catholic 98% |
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: 1.09 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 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: automatic system satisfies normal requirements
domestic: submarine cable and microwave radio relay between islands international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 60.381 million (1997) | 187,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 63.88 million (2000) | 17,691 (1997) |
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) | 6 (2000) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous | mostly low, rocky, flat to dissected plains; many coastal cliffs |
Total fertility rate | 1.41 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.91 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.7% (2000) | 7% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 1,770 km approximately
note: seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas |
none |