Korea, North (2001) | Nauru (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 3 special cities* (si, singular and plural); Chagang-do (Chagang Province), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong Province), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong Province), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae Province), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae Province), Kaesong-si* (Kaesong City), Kangwon-do (Kangwon Province), Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (P'yongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
25.52% (male 2,873,390; female 2,733,163) 15-64 years: 67.63% (male 7,301,531; female 7,556,554) 65 years and over: 6.85% (male 486,805; female 1,016,785) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.6% (male 2,515; female 2,366)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 3,578; female 3,656) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 108; female 106) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs | coconuts |
Airports | 87 (2000 est.) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
39 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
48 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
120,540 sq km land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Mississippi | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Following World War II, Korea was split into a northern, communist half and a southern, Western-oriented half. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population, while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear and chemical weapons are of major concern to the international community. | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic. |
Birth rate | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 26.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
Capital | P'yongyang | no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 2,495 km | 30 km |
Constitution | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 | 29 January 1968 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Democratic People's Republic of Korea conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: none note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country abbreviation: DPRK |
conventional long form: Republic of Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | North Korean won (KPW) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 6.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $12 billion (1996 est.) | $33.3 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) | the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, headed by YI Hyong-chol | Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
Disputes - international | 33-km section of boundary with China in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - an estimated $200 million to $300 million in humanitarian aid from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 1997 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations; substantial continuing humanitarian aid, 1998-2000 | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
Economy - overview | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and spare parts shortages. The nation faces its seventh year of food shortages because of weather-related problems, including major drought in 2000, and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape the major consequence of spreading economic failure, such as mass starvation, but the population remains vulnerable to prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for expanding investment and consumption goods. In 2000, the regime placed emphasis on expanding foreign trade links, embracing modern technology, and attracting foreign investment, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing market-oriented reforms. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freeze on wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 26.598 billion kWh (1999) | 27.9 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 28.6 billion kWh (1999) | 30 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
34.62% hydro: 65.38% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Sea of Japan 0 m highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990), 2.3 (December 1989); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 200 | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (January 2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
KIM Chong-il (since NA July 1994); note - in September 1998, KIM Chong-il was reelected Chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded the nation's "highest administrative authority"; KIM Yong-nam was named President of the Supreme People's Assembly Presidium and given the responsibility of representing the state and receiving diplomatic credentials head of government: Premier HONG Song-nam (since 5 September 1998) cabinet: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly elections: premier elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA) election results: HONG Song-nam elected premier; percent of Supreme People's Assembly vote - NA% |
chief of state: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2004); following Rene HARRIS' resignation, Bernard DOWIYOGO was elected president election results: Rene HARRIS elected president; percent of Parliamentary vote - NA%; replaced by Bernard DOWIYOGO 9 January 2003 following a no-confidence vote; HARRIS reinstated 17 January 2003, then gives up presidency 18 January and DOWIYOGO is elected president; DOWIYOGO dies 10 March 2003; with 9 votes over 8 for Kinza CLODUMAR, Derog GIOURA was named acting president |
Exports | $520 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $25.3 million f.o.b. (1991) |
Exports - commodities | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); agricultural and fishery products | phosphates |
Exports - partners | Japan 28%, South Korea 21%, China 5%, Germany 4%, Russia 1% (1995) | NZ, Australia, South Korea, US (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
30% industry: 42% services: 28% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -3% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 127 00 E | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
Highways | total:
31,200 km paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1996) |
total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | broad-based money-laundering center |
Imports | $960 million (c.i.f., 1999 est.) | $21.1 million c.i.f. (1991) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; consumer goods, grain | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | China 33%, Japan 17%, Russia 5%, South Korea 4%, Germany 3% (1995) | Australia, US, UK, Indonesia, India (2000) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | 23.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 10.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | -3.6% (1993) (1993) |
International organization participation | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, ICAO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 14,600 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 9.6 million | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% | employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
Land boundaries | total:
1,673 km border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
14% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 61% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Korean | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 July 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - the KWP approves a single list of candidates who are elected without opposition; minor parties hold a few seats |
unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.02 years male: 68.04 years female: 74.15 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 61.57 years
male: 58.05 years female: 65.26 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write Korean total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | Asia | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM note: military boundary line 50 NM in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
110 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 661,792 GRT/903,367 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 94, combination bulk 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, short-sea passenger 2 (2000 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3.7 billion to $4.9 billion (FY98 est.) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 25% to 33% (FY98 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
5,943,735 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 3,103 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,574,050 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,710 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
179,136 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Korean(s) adjective: Korean |
noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower | phosphates, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 37 km; petroleum product 180 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Chondoist Chongu Party [YU Mi-yong, chairwoman]; Korean Social Democratic Party [KIM Pyong-sik, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, General Secretary] | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 21,968,228 (July 2001 est.) | 12,329 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.22% (2001 est.) | 1.96% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 3.36 million (1997) | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
5,000 km standard gauge: 4,095 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified; 159 km double track) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge dual gauge: 240 km 1.435-m and 1.600-m gauges (four rails interlaced) (1996 est.) |
total: 5 km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast (2001) |
Religions | traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.1 million (1997) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (1999) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 2.26 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 0% |
Waterways | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |
none |