Korea, North (2001) | Tokelau (2008) | |
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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) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
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: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats; fish |
Airports | 87 (2000 est.) | - |
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.) |
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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.) |
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Area | total:
120,540 sq km land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Mississippi | about 17 times the size of The Mall in 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. | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. |
Birth rate | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $430,800
expenditures: $2.8 million (1987 est.) |
Capital | P'yongyang | none; each atoll has its own administrative center
time difference: UTC-11 (6 hours behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 2,495 km | 101 km |
Constitution | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 |
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: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
Currency | North Korean won (KPW) | - |
Death rate | 6.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $12 billion (1996 est.) | - |
Dependency status | - | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelau and New Zealand have agreed to a draft constitution as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand; a UN sponsored referendum on self governance in October 2007 did not produce the two-thirds majority vote necessary for changing the political status |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, headed by YI Hyong-chol | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | 33-km section of boundary with China in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea | Tokelau included American Samoa's Swains Island (Olohega) in its 2006 draft constitution |
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 | - |
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. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services with annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. |
Electricity - consumption | 26.598 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 28.6 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
34.62% hydro: 65.38% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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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 5 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation | limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
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 |
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Ethnic groups | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese | Polynesian |
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 | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.3811 (2007), 1.5408 (2006), 1.4203 (2005), 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003) |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General of New Zealand Anand SATYANAND (since 23 August 2006); New Zealand is represented by Administrator David PAYTON (since 17 October 2006)
head of government: Pio TUIA (since 23 February 2008); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders) cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors), functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
Exports | $520 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $0 |
Exports - commodities | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); agricultural and fishery products | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Japan 28%, South Korea 21%, China 5%, Germany 4%, Russia 1% (1995) | New Zealand (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22 billion (2000 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.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -3% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 127 00 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated | consists of three atolls (Atafu, Fakaofo, Nukunonu), each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over 3 m above sea level |
Highways | total:
31,200 km paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1996) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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Imports | $960 million (c.i.f., 1999 est.) | $969,200 c.i.f. (2002) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; consumer goods, grain | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | China 33%, Japan 17%, Russia 5%, South Korea 4%, Germany 3% (1995) | New Zealand (2006) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | 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 | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 23.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | NA% |
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 | PIF (observer), SPC, UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 14,600 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 9.6 million | 440 (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% | - |
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% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Korean | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
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 | New Zealand and local statutes |
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 General Fono (20 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Atafu has seven seats, Fakaofo has seven seats, Nukunonu has six seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held 17-19 January 2008 (next to be held in 2011) election results: independents 20 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.02 years male: 68.04 years female: 74.15 years (2001 est.) |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write Korean total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
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, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 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.) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3.7 billion to $4.9 billion (FY98 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 25% to 33% (FY98 est.) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
5,943,735 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,574,050 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
179,136 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun:
Korean(s) adjective: Korean |
noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA |
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] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 21,968,228 (July 2001 est.) | 1,449 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.22% (2001 est.) | -0.018% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA (one radio station provides service to all islands) (2002) |
Radios | 3.36 million (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.) |
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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 |
Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
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.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
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: modern satellite-based communications system
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.1 million (1997) | 300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | - |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (1999) | - |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 2.26 children born/woman (2001 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |
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