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Compare Northern Mariana Islands (2007) - European Union (2004)

Compare Northern Mariana Islands (2007) z European Union (2004)

 Northern Mariana Islands (2007)European Union (2004)
 Northern Mariana IslandsEuropean Union
Administrative divisions none (commonwealth in political union with the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are four municipalities at the second order: Northern Islands, Rota, Saipan, Tinian -
Age structure 0-14 years: 18.9% (male 8,354/female 7,612)


15-64 years: 79.5% (male 27,334/female 39,860)


65 years and over: 1.6% (male 717/female 669) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 16.3%


15-64 years: 67.2%


65 years and over: 16.6% (July 2004 est.)
Agriculture - products coconuts, fruits, vegetables; cattle wheat, barley, oilseeds, sugar beets, wine, grapes, dairy products, cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, fish
Airports 5 (2007) total: 3,130


with paved runways: 1,834


with unpaved runways: 1,296 (2003)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
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Airports - with unpaved runways total: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
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Area total: 477 sq km


land: 477 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian
total: 3,976,372 sq km
Area - comparative 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC less than one-half the size of the US
Background Under US administration as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands decided in the 1970s not to seek independence but instead to forge closer links with the US. Negotiations for territorial status began in 1972. A covenant to establish a commonwealth in political union with the US was approved in 1975, and came into force on 24 March 1976. A new government and constitution went into effect in 1978. Following the two devastating World Wars of the first half of the 20th century, a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both economically and politically. In 1950, the French Foreign Minister Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all of Europe, the first step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members, Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed the Treaty of Paris.

The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the countries' economies. In 1957, the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM), and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967, the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC), creating a single Commission, a single Council of Ministers, and the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments, but in 1979 the first direct elections were undertaken and they have been held every five years since.

In 1973, the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy, in judicial and internal affairs, and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995, Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined to the EU, raising the membership total to 15.

A new currency, the euro, was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU states except Great Britain, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002, citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia - bringing the current membership to 25. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership, the 2003 Treaty of Nice set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An EU Constitutional Treaty, signed in Rome on 29 October 2004, gives member states two years to ratify the document before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006.

Despite the expansion of membership and functions, "Eurosceptics" in various countries have raised questions about the erosion of national cultures and the imposition of a flood of regulations from the EU capital in Brussels. Failure by member states to ratify the constitution or the inability of newcomer countries to meet euro currency standards might force a loosening of some EU agreements and perhaps lead to several levels of EU participation. These "tiers" might eventually range from an "inner" core of politically integrated countries to a looser "outer" economic association of members.
Birth rate 19.27 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10.2 births/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $193 million


expenditures: $223 million (FY01/02 est.)
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Capital name: Saipan


geographic coordinates: 15 12 N, 145 45 E


time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Brussels, Belgium
Climate tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south
Coastline 1,482 km 65,413.9 km
Constitution Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978; Covenant Agreement fully effective 4 November 1986 based on a series of treaties: the Treaty of Paris, which set up the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1951; the Treaties of Rome, which set up the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957; the Single European Act in 1986; the Treaty on European Union (Maastrict) in 1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in 2001; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty, signed on 29 October 2004 in Rome, gives member states two years for ratification either by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006
Country name conventional long form: Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands


conventional short form: Northern Mariana Islands


abbreviation: CNMI


former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Mariana Islands District
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Currency - euro; pound (Cyprus), koruna (Czech Republic), krone (Denmark), kroon (Estonia), forint (Hungary), lat (Latvia), litas (Lithuania), lira (Malta), zloty (Poland), koruna (Slovakia), tolar (Slovenia), krona (Sweden), pound (UK)
Death rate 2.29 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10 deaths/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Debt - external $NA $NA
Dependency status commonwealth in political union with the US; federal funds to the Commonwealth administered by the US Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs -
Diplomatic representation from the US - chief of mission: Ambassador Rockwell SCHNABEL


embassy: 13 Zinnerstraat (Rue Zinner), B-1000 Brussels


mailing address: same as above


telephone: [32] (2) 508-2222


FAX: [32] (2) 512-5720
Diplomatic representation in the US - chief of mission: Ambassador John BRUTON


chancery: 2300 M Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20037


telephone: [1] (202) 862-9500


FAX: [1] (202) 429-1766
Disputes - international none -
Economic aid - donor - $NA
Economic aid - recipient extensive funding from US -
Economy - overview The economy benefits substantially from financial assistance from the US. The rate of funding has declined as locally generated government revenues have grown. The key tourist industry employs about 50% of the work force and accounts for roughly one-fourth of GDP. Japanese tourists predominate. Annual tourist entries have exceeded one-half million in recent years, but financial difficulties in Japan have caused a temporary slowdown. The agricultural sector is made up of cattle ranches and small farms producing coconuts, breadfruit, tomatoes, and melons. Garment production is by far the most important industry with the employment of 17,500 mostly Chinese workers and sizable shipments to the US under duty and quota exemptions. Domestically, the European Union attempts to lower trade barriers, adopt a common currency, and move toward convergence of living standards. Internationally, the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade position and its political and economic power. Because of the great differences in per capita income (from $10,000 to $28,000) and historic national animosities, the European Community faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. For example, both Germany and France since 2003 have flouted the member states' treaty obligation to prevent their national budgets from running more than a 3% deficit. In 2004, the EU admitted 10 central and eastern European countries that are, in general, less advanced technologically and economically than the existing 15. The Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), an associated organization, introduced the euro as the common currency on 1 January 1999. The UK, Sweden, and Denmark do not now participate; the 10 new countries may choose to join the EMU when they meet its fiscal and monetary criteria and the member states so agree.
Electricity - consumption NA kWh 2.635 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2007 est.) 234.8 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2007 est.) 245.7 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production NA kWh 2.822 trillion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location on Agrihan 965 m
lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands -7 m


highest point: Mount Blanc, France/Italy 4,807 m
Environment - current issues contamination of groundwater on Saipan may contribute to disease; clean-up of landfill; protection of endangered species conflicts with development NA
Environment - international agreements - Hazardous Wastes, Biodiversity, Air Pollution, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical Timber 94, Ozone Layer Protection, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Law of the Sea, Desertification, Climate Change; has signed, but not yet ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Ethnic groups Asian 56.3%, Pacific islander 36.3%, Caucasian 1.8%, other 0.8%, mixed 4.8% (2000 census) -
Exchange rates the US dollar is used euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Executive branch chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)


head of government: Governor Benigno R. FITIAL (since 9 January 2006); Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. VILLAGOMEZ (since 9 January 2006)


cabinet: the cabinet consists of the heads of the 10 principal departments under the executive branch who are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate; other members include Special Assistants to the governor and office heads appointed by and reporting directly to the governor


elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 5 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2009)


election results: Benigno R. FITIAL elected governor in a four-way race; percent of vote - Benigno R. FITIAL 28.07%, Heinz HOFSCHNEIDER 27.34%, Juan BABAUTA 26.6%, Froilan TENORIO 17.99%
chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose DURAO BARROSO (since 22 November 2004)


cabinet: European Commission (composed of 25 members, one from each member country; each commissioner responsible for one or more policy areas)


elections: the president of the European Commission is designated by member governments; the president-designate then chooses the other Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire Commission for a five-year term; election last held 18 November 2004 (next to be held 2009)


election results: European Parliament approved the European Commission by an approval vote of 449-149 with 82 abstentions


note: the European Council brings together heads of state and government and the president of the European Commission and meets at least twice a year; its aim is to provide the impetus for the major political issues relating to European integration and to issue general policy guidelines
Exports $NA 6.429 million bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities garments machinery, motor vehicles, aircraft, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other chemicals, fuels, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, wood pulp and paper products, textiles, meat, dairy products, fish, alcoholic beverages.
Exports - partners US (2006) NA
Fiscal year 1 October - 30 September NA
Flag description blue, with a white, five-pointed star superimposed on the gray silhouette of a latte stone (a traditional foundation stone used in building) in the center, surrounded by a wreath on a blue field, 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle, representing the union of the peoples of Europe; the number of stars is fixed
GDP - purchasing power parity - $11.05 trillion (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
agriculture: 2.3%


industry: 28.3%


services: 69.4% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $25,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate NA% 1% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 15 12 N, 145 45 E -
Geography - note strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean -
Heliports 1 (2007) 94 (2003)
Highways - total: 4,634,810 km (including 56,704 km of expressways)


paved: 4,161,318 km


unpaved: 473,492 km (1999-2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 2.9%


highest 10%: 25.2% (1995 est.)
Imports $214.4 million (2001) 16.97 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities food, construction equipment and materials, petroleum products machinery, vehicles, aircraft, plastics, crude oil, chemicals, textiles, metals, foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners US, Japan (2006) NA
Independence none (commonwealth in political union with the US) 7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 0.8% (2004 est.)
Industries tourism, construction, garments, handicrafts among the world's largest and most technologically advanced industries, including iron and steel, aluminum, petroleum, coal, cement, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, aircraft, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, electrical power equipment, machine tools, electronics, telecommunications equipment, fishing, food processing, furniture, paper, textiles and clothing, tourism
Infant mortality rate total: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 6.8 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 6.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births (July 2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) -0.8% (2000) 2% (2004 est.)
International organization participation Interpol (subbureau), SPC, UPU European Union: ASEAN (dialogue member), ARF (dialogue member), EBRD, IDA, OAS (observer), OECD, WTO


European Commission: Australian Group, CBSS, CERN, FAO, G-10, NSG (observer), UN (observer)


European Central Bank: BIS


European Investment Bank: WADB (nonregional member)
Irrigated land NA 115,807 sq km
Judicial branch Commonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court; Federal District Court European Court of Justice (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied correctly) - 25 Justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 11 justices known as the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 25 justices appointed for a six-year term
Labor force 44,470 total indigenous labor force; 2,699 unemployed; 28,717 foreign workers (2000) 211.1 million
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
agriculture 4.3%, industry 29%, services 66.8% (2000)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 11,214.8 km


border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein 34.9 km, Macedonia 246 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km, Romania 443 km, Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km, Switzerland 1,811 km, Turkey 206 km, Ukraine 726 km


note: data for European Continent only
Land use arable land: 13.04%


permanent crops: 4.35%


other: 82.61% (2005)
arable land: NA


permanent crops: NA
Languages Philippine languages 24.4%, Chinese 23.4%, Chamorro 22.4%, English 10.8%, other Pacific island languages 9.5%, other 9.6% (2000 census) Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish; note - only official languages are listed
Legal system based on US system, except for customs, wages, immigration laws, and taxation -
Legislative branch bicameral Legislature consists of the Senate (9 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year staggered terms) and the House of Representatives (20 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 3 November 2007 (next to be held in November 2009); House of Representatives - last held 3 November 2007 (next to be held in November 2009)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Covenant Party 3, Republican Party 3, Democratic Party 1, independents 2; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Republican Party 12, Covenant Party 4, Democratic Party 1, independents 3


note: the Northern Mariana Islands does not have a nonvoting delegate in the US Congress; instead, it has an elected official or "resident representative" in Washington, DC; seats by party - Republican Party 1 (Pedro A. TENORIO)
Council of the European Union (25 member-state ministers having 321 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population); note - the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU; European Parliament (732 seats; seats allocated among member states by proportion to population); members elected by direct universal suffrage for a five-year term


elections: last held 10-13 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009)


election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPP-ED 268, PES 202, ALDE 88, Greens/EFA 42, EUL/NGL 41, IND/DEM 36, UEN 27, independents 28
Life expectancy at birth total population: 76.29 years


male: 73.7 years


female: 79.05 years (2007 est.)
total population: 78.1 years


male: 74.9 years


female: 81.4 years (July 2004 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97%


male: 97%


female: 96% (1980 est.)
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Location Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines Europe between Eastern Europe and the North Atlantic Ocean
Map references Oceania Europe
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
NA
Military - note defense is the responsibility of the US In October 2004, the European Union heads of government signed a "constitutional treaty" that offers possibilities - with some limits - for increased defense and security cooperation. If ratified, in a process that may take some two years, this treaty will in effect make operational the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) approved in the 2000 Nice Treaty. Despite limits of cooperation for some EU members, development of a European military planning unit is likely to continue. So is creation of a rapid-reaction military force and a humanitarian aid system, which the planning unit will support. France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy continue to press for wider coordination. The five-nation Eurocorps - created in 1992 by France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Luxembourg - has already deployed troops and police on peacekeeping missions to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo and assumed command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan in August 2004. Eurocorps directly commands the 5,000-man Franco-German Brigade and the Multinational Command Support Brigade and will command EUFOR, which will take over from SFOR in Bosnia in December 2004. Other troop contributions are under national command - committments to provide 67,100 troops were made at the Helsinki EU session in 2000. Some 56,000 EU troops were actually deployed in 2003. In August 2004, the new European Defense Agency, tasked with promoting cooperative European defense capabilities, began operations. As of November 2004, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France had proposed creation of three 1,500-man rapid-reaction "battle groups."
National holiday Commonwealth Day, 8 January (1978) Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that Robert Schuman proposed the creation of an organized Europe
Nationality noun: NA (US citizens)


adjective: NA
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Natural hazards active volcanoes on Pagan and Agrihan; typhoons (especially August to November) flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in Spain; ice floes in the Baltic
Natural resources arable land, fish iron ore, arable land, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead, zinc, hydropower, uranium, potash, fish
Net migration rate 7.64 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Political parties and leaders Covenant Party [Benigno R. FITIAL]; Democratic Party [Dr. Carlos S. CAMACHO]; Republican Party [Juan S. REYES] Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Graham R. WATSON]; Independence/Democracy Group or IND/DEM [Jens-Peter BONDE and Nigel FARAGE]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Monica FRASSONI and Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT]; Socialist Group in the European Parliament or PES [Martin SCHULZ]; Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or EUL/NGL [Francis WURTZ]; European People's Party-European Democrats or EPP-ED [Hans-Gert POETTERING]; Union for Europe of the Nations Group or UEN [Brian CROWLEY and Cristiana MUSCARDINI]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA -
Population 84,546 (July 2007 est.) 456,285,839 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% NA
Population growth rate 2.461% (2007 est.) 0.17% (July 2004 est.)
Ports and harbors - Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Bremen (Germany), Copenhagen (Denmark), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Naples (Italy), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Riga (Latvia), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Stockholm (Sweden), Talinn (Estonia)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 6, shortwave 1 (2005) AM 866, FM 13,396, shortwave 73 (1998); note - sum of individual country radio broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Euroradio)
Railways - total: 222,293 km


broad gauge: 28,438 km


standard gauge: 186,405 km


narrow gauge: 7,427 km


other: 23 km (2003)
Religions Christian (Roman Catholic majority, although traditional beliefs and taboos may still be found) Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.097 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.686 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.072 male(s)/female


total population: 0.756 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: NA


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and older: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (July 2004 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal; indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 1-670; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
note - see individual country entries of member states
Telephones - main lines in use 21,000 (2000) 238,763,162 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 20,500 (2004) 314,644,700 (2002)
Television broadcast stations 1 (on Saipan; in addition, 2 cable services on Saipan provide varied programming from satellite networks) (2006) 2,791 (1995); note - does not include repeaters; sum of indiviual country television broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Eurovision)
Terrain southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas
Total fertility rate 1.21 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.48 children born/woman (July 2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 3.9% (2001) 9.1% (2004 est.)
Waterways - 53,512 km
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