Korea, South (2004) | Netherlands Antilles (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 7 metropolitan cities (gwangyoksi, singular and plural)
provinces: Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto (North Cholla), Cholla-namdo (South Cholla), Ch'ungch'ong-bukto (North Ch'ungch'ong), Ch'ungch'ong-namdo (South Ch'ungch'ong), Kangwon-do, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto (North Kyongsang), Kyongsang-namdo (South Kyongsang) metropolitan cities: Inch'on-gwangyoksi (Inchon), Kwangju-gwangyoksi (Kwangju), Pusan-gwangyoksi (Pusan), Soul-t'ukpyolsi (Seoul), Taegu-gwangyoksi (Taegu), Taejon-gwangyoksi (Taejon), Ulsan-gwangyoksi (Ulsan) |
none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.4% (male 5,223,344; female 4,681,594)
15-64 years: 71.4% (male 17,625,302; female 17,072,029) 65 years and over: 8.2% (male 1,597,085; female 2,398,821) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.9% (male 27,197/female 25,886)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 71,622/female 77,710) 65 years and over: 8.7% (male 7,925/female 11,396) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit |
Airports | 102 (2003 est.) | 5 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 88
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 38 (2004 est.) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 91
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 88 (2004 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 98,480 sq km
land: 98,190 sq km water: 290 sq km |
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Indiana | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Korea was an independent kingdom under Chinese suzerainty for most of the past millennium. Following its victory in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, Japan occupied Korea; five years later it formally annexed the entire peninsula. After World War II, a republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a Communist-style government was installed in the north. During the Korean War (1950-1953), US and other UN forces intervened to defend South Korea from North Korean attacks supported by the Chinese. An armistice was signed in 1953, splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth with per capita income rising to roughly 18 times the level of North Korea. In 1987, South Korean voters elected ROH Tae-woo to the presidency, ending 26 years of military dictatorships. South Korea today is a fully functioning modern democracy. In June 2000, a historic first North-South summit took place between the South's President KIM Tae-chung and the North's leader KIM Jong Il. | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion is called Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe (France). |
Birth rate | 12.33 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 14.78 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $135.5 billion
expenditures: $128.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $23.5 billion (2003) |
revenues: $757.9 million
expenditures: $949.5 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2004) |
Capital | Seoul | name: Willemstad (on Curacao)
geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 68 56 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 2,413 km | 364 km |
Constitution | 17 July 1948 | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Korea
conventional short form: South Korea local long form: Taehan-min'guk local short form: none note: the South Koreans generally use the term "Han'guk" to refer to their country abbreviation: ROK |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
Currency | South Korean won (KRW) | - |
Death rate | 6.13 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $130.3 billion (2003 est.) | $2.68 billion (2004) |
Dependency status | - | an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher R. HILL
embassy: 82 Sejong-no, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-710 mailing address: American Embassy, Unit 15550, APO AP 96205-5550 telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114 FAX: [82] (2) 738-8845 |
chief of mission: Consul General Robert E. SORENSON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador HONG Seok-hyun
chancery: 2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-5600 FAX: [1] (202) 387-0205 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle consulate(s): New York, Tamuning (Guam) |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Jeffrey CORRION, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Disputes - international | Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic maritime disputes with North Korea over the Northern Limit Line; unresolved dispute with Japan over Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima) and occasional protests over fishing rights in grounds also claimed by Japan | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA $200 million | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $21.5 million IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million (2004) |
Economy - overview | Since the early 1960s, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern world economy. Four decades ago GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is 18 times North Korea's and equal to the lesser economies of the European Union. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government/business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-99 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. Growth plunged to a negative 6.6% in 1998, then strongly recovered to 10.8% in 1999 and 9.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms had stalled. Led by consumer spending and exports, growth in 2002 was an impressive 6.2%, despite anemic global growth, followed by moderate 2.8% growth in 2003. In 2003 the National Assembly approved legislation reducing the six-day work week to five days. | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or grown slightly in each of the past eight years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems hamper reform of the health and pension systems of an aging population. |
Electricity - consumption | 270.3 billion kWh (2001) | 945.8 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 290.7 billion kWh (2001) | 1.017 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Halla-san 1,950 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution in large cities; acid rain; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | homogeneous (except for about 20,000 Chinese) | mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian |
Exchange rates | South Korean won per US dollar - 1,191.61 (2003), 1,251.09 (2002), 1,290.99 (2001), 1,130.96 (2000), 1,188.82 (1999) | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2005), 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President ROH Moo-hyun (since 25 February 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister LEE Hae-chan (since 25 May 2004); Deputy Prime Ministers KIM Jin-pyo (since 28 January 2005), LEE Hun-jai (since 10 February 2004), and OH Myung (since 18 October 2004) cabinet: State Council appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation elections: president elected by popular vote for single five-year term; election last held 19 December 2002 (next to be held in December 2007); prime minister appointed by president with consent of National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by president on prime minister's recommendation election results: results of the 19 December 2002 election - ROH Moo-hyun elected president; percent of vote - ROH Moo-hyun (MDP) 48.9%; LEE Hoi-chang (GNP) 46.6%; other 4.5% |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE (since 26 March 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten (legislature) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held by 2007) note: government coalition - PAR, PNP, DP St. Maarten, UP Bonaire, WIPM Saba, DP Statia |
Exports | 804,700 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | Semiconductors, wireless telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles, computers, steel, ships, petrochemicals | petroleum products |
Exports - partners | China 18.2%, US 17.8%, Japan 9%, Hong Kong 7.6% (2003) | US 29.4%, Panama 14.4%, Mexico 8.8%, Haiti 5.6%, Venezuela 4.9%, Bahamas, The 4.5% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in the center; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of Changes) in each corner of the white field | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $857.8 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.6%
industry: 36.4% services: 60% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,800 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.1% (2003 est.) | 1% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 37 00 N, 127 30 E | 12 15 N, 68 45 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on Korea Strait | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao) |
Heliports | 206 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 86,990 km
paved: 64,808 km (including 1,996 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,182 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 22.5% (1999 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center |
Imports | 2.965 million bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, organic chemicals, plastics | crude petroleum, food, manufactures |
Imports - partners | Japan 20.3%, US 13.9%, China 12.3%, Saudi Arabia 5.2% (2003) | Venezuela 52.3%, US 21.4%, Italy 4.9%, Netherlands 4.6% (2005) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | electronics, telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.18 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.68 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 9.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.6% (2003 est.) | 2.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CP, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate) |
Irrigated land | 11,590 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (justices appointed by president with consent of National Assembly); Constitutional Court (justices appointed by president based partly on nominations by National Assembly and Chief Justice of the court) | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 22.92 million (2003) | 83,600 (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 8.8%, industry 19.1%, services 72.1% (2001) | agriculture: 1%
industry: 20% services: 79% (2005 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 238 km
border countries: North Korea 238 km |
total: 15 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint-Martin) 15 km |
Land use | arable land: 17.18%
permanent crops: 1.95% other: 80.87% (2001) |
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (2005) |
Languages | Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school | Papiamento 65.4% (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), English 15.9% (widely spoken), Dutch 7.3% (official), Spanish 6.1%, Creole 1.6%, other 1.9%, unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
Legal system | combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought | based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Kukhoe (299 seats -- members elected for four-year terms; 243 in single-seat constituencies, 56 by proportional representation
elections: last held 15 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2008; by-elections scheduled for April 2005)) election results: percent of vote by party - Uri 51%, GNP 41%, DLP 3%, MDP 3%, others 2%; seats by party - Uri 152, GNP 121, DLP 10, MDP 9, others 7 (2004) |
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats - Curacao 14, Bonaire 3, St. Maarten 3, St. Eustatius 1, Saba 1; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAR 5, MAN 3, FOL 2, Forsa Korsou 2, National Alliance 2, PNP 2, UPB 2, DP St. E 1, DP St. M 1, BDP 1, WIPM 1 note: the government of Prime Minister Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE is a coalition of several parties |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.58 years
male: 71.96 years female: 79.54 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 76.03 years
male: 73.76 years female: 78.41 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9% male: 99.2% female: 96.6% (2002) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and St. Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands |
Map references | Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the Korea Strait
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: not specified |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 535 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,978,949 GRT/9,761,699 DWT
by type: bulk 97, cargo 174, chemical tanker 61, combination bulk 10, container 60, liquefied gas 19, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 73, refrigerated cargo 20, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 6, vehicle carrier 3 foreign-owned: Bahrain 1, China 1, Gibraltar 1, Honduras 1, Indonesia 1, Japan 3, Malaysia 1, Panama 1, Philippines 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, United Kingdom 1, United States 1 registered in other countries: 442 (2004 est.) |
total: 152 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,289,462 GRT/1,671,649 DWT
by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 13, cargo 68, chemical tanker 3, container 19, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 28, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 143 (Belgium 4, Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 60, Netherlands 54, Norway 5, Sweden 5, Turkey 9, UK 3, US 1) registered in other countries: 1 (Netherlands 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (Coast Guard) | no regular military forces; National Guard, Police Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $14.522 billion (FY03) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (FY03) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 14,233,895 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 8,966,241 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 341,697 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Liberation Day, 15 August (1945) | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April |
Nationality | noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in southwest | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October |
Natural resources | coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,433 km; refined products 827 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Labor Party or DLP [KIM Hye-kyung, chairwoman]; Grand National Party or GNP [PARK Geun-hye, chairwoman]; Millennium Democratic Party or MDP [HAHN Hwa-kap, chairman]; United Liberal Democrats or ULD [KIM Hak-won, chairman]; Uri Party [LIM Chae-jung, interim chairman] | Bonaire: Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramonsito BOOI]
Curacao: Ban Vota [Norbert GEORGE]; C-93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; E Mayoria [Aurelio PEDRO]; Forsa Korsou [Nelson NAVARRO]; Liste Ni'un Paso Atras [Nelson PIERRE]; Movemiento Patriotiko Korsou [Reginald LAK]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Charles COOPER]; Partido Akshon Pa Prosperidat I Seguridat [Sonja BERKEMEYER]; Partido Laboral Krusada Popular or PLKP [Errol COVA]; Party for the Restructured Antilles or PAR [Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE]; People's National Party or PNP [Ersilia DE LANNOOY]; Pidjin [Jasmin PINEDO]; Pueblo Soberano [Herman WIELS]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT] Saba: Saba Labor Party [Akilah LEVENSTONE]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Ray HASSELL] Sint Eustatius: Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Progressive Labor Party [Clyde VAN PUTTEN]; St. Eustatius Alliance [Ingrid HOUTMAN-WHITFIELD] Sint Maarten: Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Freedom Slate of National Democratic Party [Theophilus PRIEST]; National Alliance or NA [William MARLIN]; People's Progressive Alliance or PPA [Gracita ARRINDELL]; St. Maarten People's Party [Johan LEONARD]; United People's Labor Party [Bienvenido RICHARDSON] note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Federation of Korean Industries; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Confederation of Trade Unions; Korean National Council of Churches; Korean Traders Association; Korean Veterans' Association; National Council of Labor Unions; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of Farmers' Associations; National Federation of Student Associations | Unions (AVBO) and Employers Association (VBC) |
Population | 48,598,175 (July 2004 est.) | 221,736 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 4% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.62% (2004 est.) | 0.79% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chinhae, Inch'on, Kunsan, Masan, Mokp'o, P'ohang, Pusan, Tonghae-hang, Ulsan, Yosu | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 58, FM 150, shortwave 2 (2004) | AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Railways | total: 3,125 km
standard gauge: 3,125 km 1.435-m gauge (661 km electrified) (2003) |
- |
Religions | no affiliation 46%, Christian 26%, Buddhist 26%, Confucianist 1%, other 1% | Roman Catholic 72%, Pentecostal 4.9%, Protestant 3.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, Methodist 2.9%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.7%, other Christian 4.2%, Jewish 1.3%, other or unspecified 1.2%, none 5.2% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: country code - 82; fiber-optic submarine cable to China; the Russia-Korea-Japan submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region) |
general assessment: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: country code - 599; submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22.877 million (2003) | 81,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 33,591,800 (2003) | 200,000 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 64 (additionally 119 Cable Operators; 239 Relay Cable Operators) (2004) | 3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and four Venezuelan channels) (2004) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south | generally hilly, volcanic interiors |
Total fertility rate | 1.56 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3.4% (2003 est.) | 17% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 1,608 km
note: most navigable only by small craft (2004) |
- |