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Compare Netherlands (2004) - Germany (2001)
Compare Netherlands (2004) z Germany (2001)
| Netherlands (2004) | Germany (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 12 provinces (provincies, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland (Fryslan), Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland | 16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.3% (male 1,527,316; female 1,457,192)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 5,598,706; female 5,459,936) 65 years and over: 13.9% (male 953,370; female 1,321,679) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
15.57% (male 6,635,328; female 6,289,994) 15-64 years: 67.82% (male 28,619,237; female 27,691,698) 65 years and over: 16.61% (male 5,336,664; female 8,456,615) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry |
| Airports | 27 (2003 est.) | 613 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 20
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
322 over 3,047 m: 13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 55 1,524 to 2,437 m: 67 914 to 1,523 m: 63 under 914 m: 124 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total:
291 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 53 under 914 m: 225 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 41,526 sq km
land: 33,883 sq km water: 7,643 sq km |
total:
357,021 sq km land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey | slightly smaller than Montana |
| Background | The Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999. | As Western Europe's richest and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed the country in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC and NATO, while the communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then Germany has expended considerable funds to bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries formed a common European currency, the euro. |
| Birth rate | 11.41 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.16 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $237.1 billion
expenditures: $249.5 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
revenues:
$996 billion expenditures: $1.036 trillion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
| Capital | Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government | Berlin |
| Climate | temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm foehn wind |
| Coastline | 451 km | 2,389 km |
| Constitution | adopted 1815; amended many times, last time 2002 | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands
conventional short form: Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland |
conventional long form:
Federal Republic of Germany conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich |
| Currency | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
deutsche mark (DEM); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Germany at a fixed rate of 1.95583 deutsche marks per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
| Death rate | 8.67 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.42 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | - | $NA |
| Dependent areas | Aruba, Netherlands Antilles | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Clifford M. SOBEL
embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715 telephone: [31] (70) 310-9209 FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688 consulate(s) general: Amsterdam |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John C. KORNBLUM (was due to resign on 20 January 2001) embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265 telephone: [49] (30) 238-5174 FAX: [49] (30) 238-6290 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Boudewijn J. VAN EENENNAAM
chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300 FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York consulate(s): Boston |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Juergen CHROBOG chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-8141 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Seattle consulate(s): Wellington (America Samoa) |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - donor | ODA, $3.3 billion (2002 est.) | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) |
| Economy - overview | The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy, which depends heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate unemployment and inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 4% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Netherlands, along with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency on 1 January 2002. The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment. Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001-03, as part of the global economic slowdown, but for the four years before that, annual growth averaged nearly 4%, well above the EU average. The government is wrestling with a deteriorating budget position, and is moving toward the EU 3% of GDP budget deficit limit. | Germany possesses the world's third most technologically powerful economy after the US and Japan, but structural market rigidities - including the substantial non-wage costs of hiring new workers - have made unemployment a long-term, not just a cyclical, problem. Germany's aging population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy remains a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from western Germany amounting to roughly $70 billion. Growth picked up to 3% in 2000, largely due to recovering global demand; newly passed business and income tax cuts are expected to keep growth strong in 2001. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are transforming the German economy to meet the challenges of European economic integration and globalization in general. |
| Electricity - consumption | 99.42 billion kWh (2001) | 495.181 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 4.209 billion kWh (2001) | 39.5 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 21.49 billion kWh (2001) | 40.5 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 88.32 billion kWh (2001) | 531.377 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
63.29% hydro: 3.59% nuclear: 30.3% other: 2.82% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Zuidplaspolder -7 m
highest point: Vaalserberg 322 m |
lowest point:
Freepsum Lake -2 m highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
| Environment - current issues | water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles and refining activities; acid rain | emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government currently attempting to define mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, 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 signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
| Ethnic groups | Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non-Western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese and Indonesians) (1999 est.) | German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish, Spanish) |
| Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); deutsche marks per US dollar - 1.69 (January 1999), 1.7597 (1998), 1.7341 (1997), 1.5048 (1996) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Jan Peter BALKENENDE (since 22 July 2002) and Deputy Prime Ministers Gerrit ZALM (since 27 May 2003) and Thom DE GRAAF (since 27 May 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; vice prime ministers appointed by the monarch note: there is also a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors that provides consultations to the cabinet on legislative and administrative policy |
chief of state:
President Johannes RAU (since 1 July 1999) head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 1999 (next to be held 23 May 2004); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held in the fall of 2002) election results: Johannes RAU elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - 57.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly - 52.7% |
| Exports | 1.418 million bbl/day (2001) | $578 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles |
| Exports - partners | Germany 25.3%, Belgium 12.6%, France 10.2%, UK 10.1%, Italy 6%, US 4.5% (2003) | EU 55.3% (France 11.3%, UK 8.3%, Italy 7.3%, Netherlands 6.3%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5.1%), US 10.1%, Japan 2.0% (1999) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer; one of the oldest flags in constant use, originating with William I, Prince of Orange, in the latter half of the 16th century | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $461.4 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.936 trillion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.5%
industry: 24.4% services: 73.1% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
1.2% industry: 30.4% services: 68.4% (1999) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,600 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $23,400 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -0.7% (2003 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 52 30 N, 5 45 E | 51 00 N, 9 00 E |
| Geography - note | located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde) | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea |
| Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | 59 (2000 est.) |
| Highways | total: 116,500 km
paved: 104,850 km (including 2,235 km of expressways) unpaved: 11,650 km (1999) |
total:
656,140 km paved: 650,891 km (including 11,400 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,249 km (all-weather) (1998 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.1% (1994) |
- |
| Illicit drugs | major European producer of ecstasy, illicit amphetamines, and other synthetic drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy; large financial sector vulnerable to money laundering | source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs |
| Imports | 2.284 million bbl/day (2001) | $505 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs, clothing | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals |
| Imports - partners | Germany 18.2%, Belgium 10%, US 8%, UK 7.3%, China 6.2%, France 5% (2003) | EU 52.2% (France 10.5%, Netherlands 7.6%, Italy 7.4%, UK 6.9%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5.6%), US 8.1%, Japan 4.9% (1999) |
| Independence | 23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; it was not until 1648 that Spain recognized their independence) | 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991 |
| Industrial production growth rate | -2.1% (2003 est.) | 4.7% (2000) |
| Industries | agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 5.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
4.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 123 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 5,650 sq km (1998 est.) | 4,750 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch) | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) |
| Labor force | 7.46 million (2003) | 40.5 million (1999 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 23%, services 73% (1998 est.) | industry 33.4%, agriculture 2.8%, services 63.8% (1999) |
| Land boundaries | total: 1,027 km
border countries: Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km |
total:
3,618 km border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 135 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km |
| Land use | arable land: 26.71%
permanent crops: 0.97% other: 72.32% (2001) |
arable land:
33% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 31% other: 20% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Dutch (official language), Frisian (official language) | German |
| Legal system | civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: First Chamber - last held 25 May 2003 (next to be held May 2007); Second Chamber - last held 22 January 2003 (next to be held May 2007) election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDA 23, PvdA 19, VVD 15, Green Party 5, Socialist Party 4, D66 3, other 6; Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - CDA 28.6%, PvdA 27.3%, VVD 12.9%, Socialist Party 6.3%, List Pim Fortuyn 5.7%, Green Party 5.1%, D66 4.1%; seats by party - CDA 44, PvdA 42, VVD 28, Socialist Party 9, List Pim Fortuyn 8, Green Party 8, D66 6, other 5 |
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (656 seats usually, but 669 for the 1998 term; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly - last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held by the fall of 2002); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - SPD 40.9%, Alliance '90/Greens 6.7%, CDU/CSU 35.1%, FDP 6.2%, PDS 5.1%; seats by party - SPD 298, Alliance '90/Greens 47, CDU/CSU 245, FDP 43, PDS 36; Federal Council - current composition - votes by party - SPD-led states 26, CDU-led states 28, grand coalitions 15 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.68 years
male: 76.15 years female: 81.34 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
77.61 years male: 74.47 years female: 80.92 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (2000 est.) male: NA female: NA |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1977 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
| Location | Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | total: 635 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,796,460 GRT/5,212,557 DWT
by type: bulk 1, cargo 375, chemical tanker 59, combination bulk 1, container 71, liquefied gas 13, multi-functional large load carrier 15, passenger 12, petroleum tanker 28, refrigerated cargo 37, roll on/roll off 14, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 7 foreign-owned: Belgium 2, Denmark 4, Finland 9, Germany 54, Ireland 14, Norway 9, Singapore 1, Sweden 19, Thailand 1, United Kingdom 31, United States 16 registered in other countries: 241 (2004 est.) |
total:
457 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,414,724 GRT/7,952,776 DWT ships by type: cargo 169, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 1, container 243, liquefied gas 2, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 7, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 12, short-sea passenger 7 (2000 est.) |
| Military branches | Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (including Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Constabulary, Defense Interservice Command | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm), Air Force, Medical Corps, Border Police, Coast Guard |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $8,044.4 million (2003) | $32.8 billion (FY98) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2003) | 1.5% (FY98) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 4,070,043 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
20,851,022 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,534,392 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
17,760,412 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 97,624 (2004 est.) | males:
482,318 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) |
| Nationality | noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women)
adjective: Dutch |
noun:
German(s) adjective: German |
| Natural hazards | flooding | flooding |
| Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, peat, limestone, salt, sand and gravel, arable land | iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land |
| Net migration rate | 2.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | condensate 325 km; gas 6,998 km; oil 590 km; refined products 716 km (2004) | crude oil 2,500 km (1998) |
| Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Appeal or CDA [Maxime Jacques Marcel VERHAGEN]; Christian Union Party [Andre ROUVOET]; Democrats 66 or D66 [Boris DITTRICH]; Green Party [Femke HALSEMA]; Labor Party or PvdA [Wouter BOS]; List Pim Fortuyn [Gerard van AS]; People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Jozias VAN AARTSEN]; Socialist Party [Jan MARIJNISSEN]; plus a few minor parties | Alliance '90/Greens [Renate KUENAST and Fritz KUHN]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Wolfgang GERHARDT, chairman]; note - Wolfgang GERHARDT will probably be replaced by Guido WESTERWELLE in May 2001; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Gabi ZIMMER]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Gerhard SCHROEDER, chairman] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Netherlands Trade Union Federation (FNV) (consisting of a merger of Socialist and Catholic trade unions); Christian Trade Union Federation (CNV); Trade Union Federation of Middle and High Personnel (MHP); Federation of Catholic and Protestant Employers Associations; Interchurch Peace Council or IKV; large multinational firms; the nondenominational Federation of Netherlands Enterprises | employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups |
| Population | 16,318,199 (July 2004 est.) | 83,029,536 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
| Population growth rate | 0.57% (2004 est.) | 0.27% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Amsterdam, Delfzijl, Dordrecht, Eemshaven, Groningen, Haarlem, IJmuiden, Maastricht, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Utrecht, Vlissingen | Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Luebeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 246, shortwave 3 (2004) | AM 51, FM 767, shortwave 4 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 77.8 million (1997) |
| Railways | total: 2,808 km
standard gauge: 2,808 km 1.435-m gauge (2,061 km electrified) (2003) |
total:
40,826 km including at least 14,253 km electrified and 14,768 km double- or multiple-tracked (1998) note: since privatization in 1994, Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG) no longer publishes details of the tracks it owns; in addition to the DBAG system there are 102 privately owned railway companies which own an approximate 3,000 km to 4,000 km of the total tracks |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 31%, Protestant 21%, Muslim 4.4%, other 3.6%, unaffiliated 40% (1998) | Protestant 38%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 1.7%, unaffiliated or other 26.3% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: highly developed and well maintained
domestic: extensive fixed-line fiber-optic network; cellular telephone system is one of the largest in Europe with five major network operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) international: country code - 31; 9 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2004) |
general assessment:
Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: satellite earth stations - 14 Intelsat (12 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), 2 Intersputnik (1 Atlantic Ocean region and 1 Indian Ocean region); 7 submarine cable connections; 2 HF radiotelephone communication centers; tropospheric scatter links |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 10.004 million (2002) | 45.2 million (1997)
note: 46.5 million main lines were installed by yearend 1998 |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 12.5 million (2003) | 15.318 million (April 1999) |
| Television broadcast stations | 21 (plus 26 repeaters) (1995) | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south |
| Total fertility rate | 1.66 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.38 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.3% (2003 est.) | 9.9% (2000 est.) |
| Waterways | 5,046 km (navigable for ships of 50 tons) (2004) | 7,500 km
note: major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999) |
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