Japan (2003) | Greenland (2007) | |
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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 | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 9,368,132; female 8,906,024)
15-64 years: 67% (male 42,852,204; female 42,368,109) 65 years and over: 18.6% (male 9,945,638; female 13,774,392) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 24% (male 6,926/female 6,597)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 20,901/female 18,012) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 1,873/female 2,035) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish |
Airports | 172 (2002) | 14 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 141
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 27 under 914 m: 32 (2002) |
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 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 31
over 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 26 (2002) |
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
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: 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.) |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than California | slightly more than three times the size of Texas |
Background | While retaining its time-honored culture, Japan rapidly absorbed Western technology during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power 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 starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth. | 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 centered on 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 in consultation with Greenland's Home Rule Government. |
Birth rate | 9.61 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 16.01 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $441 billion
expenditures: $718 billion, including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $0 NA (FY 01/02 est.) |
revenues: $1.36 billion
expenditures: $1.27 billion (2005) |
Capital | Tokyo | name: Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates: 64 11 N, 51 45 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 |
Climate | varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 29,751 km | 44,087 km |
Constitution | 3 May 1947 | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Japan |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
Currency | yen (JPY) | - |
Death rate | 8.55 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.93 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $25 million (1999) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Howard H. BAKER, Jr.
embassy: 10-5 Akasaka 1-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420 mailing address: Unit 45004, Box 258, APO AP 96337-5004 telephone: [81] (03) 3224-5000 FAX: [81] (03) 3505-1862 consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo consulate(s): Fukuoka, Nagoya |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ryozo KATO
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) |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
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 (Take-shima/Tok-do) disputed with South Korea; Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Tai) claimed by China and Taiwan | managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $9.1 billion (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $512 million; note - subsidy from Denmark (2005) |
Economy - overview | Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) 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 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, averaging just 1.7%, 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 with little success and were further hampered in 2000-2003 by the slowing of the US, European, and Asian economies. Japan's huge government debt, which is approaching 150% of GDP, and the ageing 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." Internal conflict over the proper way to reform the ailing banking system continues. | 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. Several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities are ongoing. Press reports in early 2007 indicated that two international aluminum companies were considering building smelters in Greenland to take advantage of local hydropower potential. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. Air Greenland announced plans to begin summer-season direct flights to the U.S. east coast in May 2007 potentially opening a major new tourism market. |
Electricity - consumption | 964.2 billion kWh (2001) | 279 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.037 trillion kWh (2001) | 300 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 60%
hydro: 8.4% nuclear: 29.8% other: 1.8% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Hachiro-gata -4 m
highest point: Mount Fuji 3,776 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 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 | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting |
Environment - international agreements | party to: 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, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling | - |
Ethnic groups | Japanese 99%, others 1% (Korean 511,262, Chinese 244,241, Brazilian 182,232, Filipino 89,851, other 237,914) (2000) | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000) |
Exchange rates | yen per US dollar - 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), 130.91 (1998) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9468 (2006), 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989)
head of government: Prime Minister Junichiro KOIZUMI (since 26 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: 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 results: Hans ENOKSEN reelected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
Exports | 93,360 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | motor vehicles, semiconductors, office machinery, chemicals | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
Exports - partners | US 28.8%, China 9.6%, South Korea 6.9%, Taiwan 6.2%, Hong Kong 6.1% (2002) | Denmark 67.8%, Japan 11.9%, China 5.5% (2006) |
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 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.651 trillion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 30.9% services: 67.7% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,700 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.2% (2002 est.) | 2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 36 00 N, 138 00 E | 72 00 N, 40 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location in northeast Asia | 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 |
Heliports | 15 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 1,161,894 km
paved: 534,471 km (including 6,455 km of expressways) unpaved: 627,423 km (1999) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.8%
highest 10%: 21.7% (1993) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 5.449 million bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001) | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | China 18.3%, US 17.4%, South Korea 4.6%, Indonesia 4.2%, Australia 4.1% (2002) | Denmark 69.9%, Sweden 16.3%, Norway 3.7% (2006) |
Independence | 660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu) | none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) |
Industrial production growth rate | -1.4% (2002 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 | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards |
Infant mortality rate | total: 3.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.56 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 14.98 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.9% (2002 est.) | 1% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNRWA, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 73 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 26,790 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet) | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
Labor force | 67.7 million (December 2001) | 32,120 (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 70%, industry 25%, agriculture 5% (2002 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.13%
permanent crops: 1.01% other: 86.86% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Japanese | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
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 | the laws of Denmark, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (247 seats - members elected for six-year terms; half reelected every three years; 149 members in multi-seat constituencies and 98 by proportional representation); House of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - members elected for four-year terms; 300 in single-seat constituencies; 180 members by proportional representation in 11 regional blocs)
elections: House of Councillors - last held 29 July 2001 (next to be held in July 2004); House of Representatives - last held 9 November 2003 (next election has not been scheduled) election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LDP 110, DPJ 59, Komeito 23, JCP 20, SDP 8, Liberal Party 8, Conservative Party 5, independents 14; distribution of seats as of July 2001 was: LDP 115, DPJ 60, Komeito 24, JCP 20, SDP 8, Liberal Party 8 (merged with DPJ in 2003), independents 6, others 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - LDP 49.38%, DPJ 36.88%, Komeito 7.09%, JCP 1.88%, SDP 1.25%, NCP .84%; seats by party - LDP 237, DPJ 177, Komeito 34, JCP 9, SDP 6, NCP 4, others 13; distribution of seats as of 13 November 2003 was: LDP 244, DPJ 177, Komeito 34, JCP 9, SDP 6, others 10 |
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%, IA 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, IA 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next to be held in February 2009); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 80.93 years
male: 77.63 years female: 84.41 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 70.23 years
male: 66.65 years female: 73.9 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1995 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2001 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
Map references | Asia | Arctic Region |
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 |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line |
Merchant marine | total: 594 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 10,467,142 GRT/13,335,833 DWT
ships by type: bulk 120, cargo 45, chemical tanker 18, combination bulk 28, combination ore/oil 1, container 18, liquefied gas 52, passenger 8, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 179, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 59, short-sea passenger 6, vehicle carrier 49 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: China 1, Panama 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,422 GRT/2,340 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 1 registered in other countries: 1 (Denmark 1) (2007) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Denmark |
Military branches | Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), Air Self-Defense Force (Air Force), Coast Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $39.52 billion (FY02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (FY02) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 29,392,559 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 25,405,779 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 725,281 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933) | June 21 (longest day) |
Nationality | noun: Japanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Japanese |
noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
Natural hazards | many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island |
Natural resources | negligible mineral resources, fish | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, diamonds, gold, platinum, niobium, tantalite, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,719 km; oil 170 km; oil/gas/water 60 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Naoto KAN, leader; Katsuya OKADA, secretary general]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII, chairman; Tadayoshi ICHIDA, secretary general]; Komeito [Takenori KANZAKI, president; Tetsuzo FUYUSHIBA, secretary general]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Junichiro KOIZUMI, president; Shinzo ABE, secretary general]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Mizuho FUKUSHIMA, chairperson; Seiji MATAICHI, secretary general] | Atassut Party (Solidarity) [Finn KARLSEN] (a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark); Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood) [Josef MOTZFELDT] (a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule); Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List) (an independent right-of-center party with no official platform); Siumut (Forward Party) [Hans ENOKSEN] (a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 127,214,499 (July 2003 est.) | 56,344 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.11% (2003 est.) | -0.03% (2007 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 | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001) | AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 23,168 km (15,995 km electrified)
standard gauge: 3,204 km 1.435-m gauge (3,204 km electrified) narrow gauge: 77 km 1.372-m gauge (77 km electrified); 19,855 km 1.067-m gauge (12,683 km electrified); 31 km 0.762-m gauge (31 km electrified) (2002) |
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Religions | observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%) | Evangelical Lutheran |
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: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.115 male(s)/female (2007 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: 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) (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 60.381 million (1997) | 25,300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 63.88 million (2000) | 32,200 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 211 plus 7,341 repeaters
note: in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999) |
1 (plus some local low-power stations, and 3 Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) stations (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
Total fertility rate | 1.38 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.4 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.4% (2002) | 9.3% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 1,770 km approximately
note: seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas |
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