Korea, North (2002) | Wallis and Futuna (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 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), Najin Sonbong-si*, Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (Pyongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three kingdoms at the second order named Alo, Sigave, Wallis |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 25.4% (male 2,888,478; female 2,747,133)
15-64 years: 67.4% (male 7,380,183; female 7,612,275) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 527,256; female 1,068,870) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs | breadfruit, yams, taro, bananas; pigs, goats; fish |
Airports | 87 (2001) | 2 (2006) |
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 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
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 (2002) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total: 120,540 sq km
land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
total: 274 sq km
land: 274 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Uvea (Wallis Island), Ile Futuna (Futuna Island), Ile Alofi, and 20 islets |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Mississippi | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Communist domination and the southern portion becoming Western oriented. 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, chemical, and biological weapons and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, North Korea repudiated a 1994 agreement that shut down its nuclear reactors and expelled UN monitors, further raising fears it would produce nuclear weapons. | The Futuna island group was discovered by the Dutch in 1616 and Wallis by the British in 1767, but it was the French who declared a protectorate over the islands in 1842. In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory. |
Birth rate | 17.95 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $29,730
expenditures: $31,330 (1998 est.) |
Capital | Pyongyang | name: Mata-Utu (on Ile Uvea)
geographic coordinates: 13 57 S, 171 56 W time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer | tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year (80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C |
Coastline | 2,495 km | 129 km |
Constitution | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands
conventional short form: Wallis and Futuna local long form: Territoire des Iles Wallis et Futuna local short form: Wallis et Futuna |
Currency | North Korean won (KPW) | - |
Death rate | 6.96 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $12 billion (1996 est.) | $3.67 million $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) | none (overseas territory of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York | none (overseas territory of France) |
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 - nearly $300 million in food aid alone from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 2001 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations | assistance from France |
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. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. Despite a good harvest in 2001, the nation faces its ninth year of food shortages because of a lack of arable land; collective farming; 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 mass starvation since 1995-96, but the population remains vulnerable to prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. Recently, the regime has placed emphasis on earning hard currency, developing information technology, addressing power shortages, and attracting foreign aid, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing widespread market-oriented reforms. In 2002, heightened political tensions with key donor countries and general donor fatigue have held down the flow of desperately needed food aid and threaten fuel aid as well. | The economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with about 80% labor force earnings from agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French Government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia. |
Electricity - consumption | 31.062 billion kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 33.4 billion kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 33%
hydro: 67% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
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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: Mont Singavi 765 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation | deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain) largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion; there are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water 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 |
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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 (December 2001), 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 200 (December 2001) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001) |
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); Vice Premiers CHO Ch'ang-tok (since NA), KWAK Pom-ki (since NA), Sin IL-nam (since NA April 2002) 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: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Administrator Richard DIDIER (since 19 July 2006)
head of government: President of the Territorial Assembly Patalione KANIMOA (since January 2001) cabinet: Council of the Territory consists of three kings and three members appointed by the high administrator on the advice of the Territorial Assembly note: there are three traditional kings with limited powers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high administrator appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the Territorial Government and the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
Exports | $826 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | $47,450 f.o.b. (2004) |
Exports - commodities | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); textiles and fishery products | copra, chemicals, construction materials |
Exports - partners | Japan 36.3%, South Korea 21.5%, China 5.2% (2000) | Italy 40%, Croatia 15%, US 14%, Denmark 13% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | unofficial, local flag has a red field with four white isosceles triangles in the middle, representing the three native kings of the islands and the French administrator; the apexes of the triangles are oriented inward and at right angles to each other; the flag of France, outlined in white on two sides, is in the upper hoist quadrant; the flag of France is the only official flag |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30%
industry: 32% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 127 00 E | 13 18 S, 176 12 W |
Geography - note | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated | both island groups have fringing reefs |
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% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $1.874 billion c.i.f. (2001 est.) | $61.17 million f.o.b. (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; textiles, grain | chemicals, machinery, passenger ships, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | China 26.7%, South Korea 16.2%, Japan 12.3% (2000) | France 97%, Australia 2%, NZ 1% (2004) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | none (overseas territory of France) |
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 | copra, handicrafts, fishing, lumber |
Infant mortality rate | 22.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 2.8% NA% |
International organization participation | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | SPC, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 14,600 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) | none; justice generally administered under French law by the high administrator, but the three traditional kings administer customary law and there is a magistrate in Mata-Utu |
Labor force | 9.6 million | NA 3,104 |
Labor force - by occupation | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% | agriculture: 80%
industry: 4% services: 16% (2001 est.) |
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: 14.12%
permanent crops: 2.49% other: 83.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 7.14%
permanent crops: 35.71% other: 57.15% (2005) |
Languages | Korean | Wallisian 58.9% (indigenous Polynesian language), Futunian 30.1%, French 10.8%, other 0.2% (2003 census) |
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 | French legal system |
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 Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (20 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 March 2002 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR and affiliates 13, Socialists and affiliates 7 note: Wallis and Futuna elects one senator to the French Senate and one deputy to the French National Assembly; French Senate - elections last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held by September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats - RPR (now UMP) 1; French National Assembly - elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held by in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats - RPR (UMP) 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.3 years
male: 68.31 years female: 74.44 years (2002 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write Korean
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 50% male: 50% female: 50% (1969 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds 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: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 738,886 GRT/1,037,506 DWT
ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 102, combination bulk 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 6, refrigerated cargo 3, short-sea passenger 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 1, Greece 2, Pakistan 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 110,428 GRT/56,830 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, passenger 7 foreign-owned: 8 (France 5, French Polynesia 2, US 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5,124.1 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 31.3% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,032,376 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,619,535 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 179,136 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
noun: Wallisian(s), Futunan(s), or Wallis and Futuna Islanders
adjective: Wallisian, Futunan, or Wallis and Futuna Islander |
Natural hazards | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall | NA |
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 (2002 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2006 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 Yong-tae, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, General Secretary] | Lua Kae Tahi (Giscardians); Mouvement des Radicaux de Gauche or MRG; Rally for the Republic or RPR (UMP) [Clovis LOGOLOGOFOLAU]; Socialist Party or PS; Taumu'a Lelei [Soane Muni UHILA]; Union Populaire Locale or UPL [Falakiko GATA]; Union Pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 22,224,195 (July 2002 est.) | 16,025 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.1% (2002 est.) | NA |
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 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (2000) |
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-tracked) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge dual gauge: 240 km 1.435-m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails provide two gauges) (1996) |
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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 |
Roman Catholic 99%, other 1% |
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: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | 18 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: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 681 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.1 million (1997) | 1,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 0 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (1999) | 2 (2000) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east | volcanic origin; low hills |
Total fertility rate | 2.22 children born/woman (2002 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15.2% NA% |
Waterways | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |
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