Norway (2005) | Western Sahara (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 19 counties (fylker, singular - fylke); Akershus, Aust-Agder, Buskerud, Finnmark, Hedmark, Hordaland, More og Romsdal, Nordland, Nord-Trondelag, Oppland, Oslo, Ostfold, Rogaland, Sogn og Fjordane, Sor-Trondelag, Telemark, Troms, Vest-Agder, Vestfold | none (under de facto control of Morocco) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.5% (male 459,418/female 437,734)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 1,531,249/female 1,484,656) 65 years and over: 14.8% (male 286,343/female 393,641) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes; pork, beef, veal, milk; fish | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads); fish |
Airports | 101 (2004 est.) | 11 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 65
2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 36
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2004 est.) |
total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Area | total: 324,220 sq km
land: 307,860 sq km water: 16,360 sq km |
total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than New Mexico | about the size of Colorado |
Background | Two centuries of Viking raids into Europe tapered off following the adoption of Christianity by King Olav TRYGGVASON in 994. Conversion of the Norwegian kingdom occurred over the next several decades. In 1397, Norway was absorbed into a union with Denmark that was to last for more than four centuries. In 1814, Norwegians resisted the cession of their country to Sweden and adopted a new constitution. Sweden then invaded Norway but agreed to let Norway keep its constitution in return for accepting the union under a Swedish king. Rising nationalism throughout the 19th century led to a 1905 referendum granting Norway independence. Although Norway remained neutral in World War I, it suffered heavy losses to its shipping. Norway proclaimed its neutrality at the outset of World War II, but was nonetheless occupied for five years by Nazi Germany (1940-45). In 1949, neutrality was abandoned and Norway became a member of NATO. Discovery of oil and gas in adjacent waters in the late 1960s boosted Norway's economic fortunes. The current focus is on containing spending on the extensive welfare system and planning for the time when petroleum reserves are depleted. In referenda held in 1972 and 1994, Norway rejected joining the EU. | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. |
Birth rate | 11.67 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $134 billion
expenditures: $116.8 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | Oslo | none
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current; colder interior with increased precipitation and colder summers; rainy year-round on west coast | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew |
Coastline | 25,148 km (includes mainland 2,650 km, as well as long fjords, numerous small islands, and minor indentations 22,498 km; length of island coastlines 58,133 km) | 1,110 km |
Constitution | 17 May 1814; amended many times | - |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Norway
conventional short form: Norway local long form: Kongeriket Norge local short form: Norge |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
Death rate | 9.45 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $0 (Norway is a net external creditor) (2003 est.) | $NA |
Dependent areas | Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ONG
embassy: Drammensveien 18, 0244 Oslo mailing address: PSC 69, Box 1000, APO AE 09707 telephone: [47] (22) 44 85 50 FAX: [47] (22) 44 33 63 |
none |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Knut VOLLEBAEK
chancery: 2720 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6000 FAX: [1] (202) 337-0870 consulate(s) general: Houston, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco |
none |
Disputes - international | Norway asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Queen Maud Land and its continental shelf); despite recent discussions, Russia and Norway continue to dispute their maritime limits in the Barents Sea and Russia's fishing rights beyond Svalbard's territorial limits within the Svalbard Treaty zone | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved; UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.4 billion (1998) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | The Norwegian economy is a prosperous bastion of welfare capitalism, featuring a combination of free market activity and government intervention. The government controls key areas, such as the vital petroleum sector (through large-scale state enterprises). The country is richly endowed with natural resources - petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests, and minerals - and is highly dependent on its oil production and international oil prices, with oil and gas accounting for one-third of exports. Only Saudi Arabia and Russia export more oil than Norway. Norway opted to stay out of the EU during a referendum in November 1994; nonetheless, it contributes sizably to the EU budget. The government has moved ahead with privatization. With arguably the highest quality of life worldwide, Norwegians still worry about that time in the next two decades when the oil and gas will begin to run out. Accordingly, Norway has been saving its oil-boosted budget surpluses in a Government Petroleum Fund, which is invested abroad and now is valued at more than $150 billion. After lackluster growth of 1% in 2002 and 0.5% in 2003, GDP growth picked up to 3.3% in 2004. | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. |
Electricity - consumption | 107.4 billion kWh (2002) | 83.7 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 15 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 5.3 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 125.9 billion kWh (2002) | 85 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Norwegian Sea 0 m
highest point: Galdhopiggen 2,469 m |
lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; acid rain damaging forests and adversely affecting lakes, threatening fish stocks; air pollution from vehicle emissions | sparse water and lack of arable land |
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 Seals, 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 |
party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Norwegian, Sami 20,000 | Arab, Berber |
Exchange rates | Norwegian kroner per US dollar - 6.7408 (2004), 7.0802 (2003), 7.9838 (2002), 8.9917 (2001), 8.8018 (2000) | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.865 (2005), 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King HARALD V (since 17 January 1991); Heir Apparent Crown Prince HAAKON MAGNUS, son of the monarch (born 20 July 1973)
head of government: Prime Minister Jens STOLTENBERG (since 17 October 2005) cabinet: State Council appointed by the monarch with the approval of parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following parliamentary elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch with the approval of the parliament |
none |
Exports | 3.466 million bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, ships, fish | phosphates 62% |
Exports - partners | UK 22.4%, Germany 12.9%, Netherlands 9.9%, France 9.6%, US 8.4%, Sweden 6.7% (2004) | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a blue cross outlined in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.2%
industry: 36.3% services: 61.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 40% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $40,000 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 62 00 N, 10 00 E | 24 30 N, 13 00 W |
Geography - note | about two-thirds mountains; some 50,000 islands off its much indented coastline; strategic location adjacent to sea lanes and air routes in North Atlantic; one of most rugged and longest coastlines in world | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 91,852 km
paved: 71,185 km (including 178 km of expressways) unpaved: 20,667 km (2002) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 21.8% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 88,870 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Sweden 15.7%, Germany 13.6%, Denmark 7.3%, UK 6.5%, China 5%, US 4.9%, Netherlands 4.4%, France 4.3%, Finland 4.1% (2004) | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2004) |
Independence | 7 June 1905 (Norway declared the union with Sweden dissolved); 26 October 1905 (Sweden agreed to the repeal of the union) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.2% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing | phosphate mining, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 3.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.07 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2004 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, ESA, FAO, 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, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | none |
Irrigated land | 1,270 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Hoyesterett (justices appointed by the monarch) | - |
Labor force | 2.38 million (2004 est.) | 12,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, forestry, and fishing 4%, industry 22%, services 74% (1995) | agriculture: 50%
industry and services: 50% |
Land boundaries | total: 2,542 km
border countries: Finland 727 km, Sweden 1,619 km, Russia 196 km |
total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.87%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.13% (2001) |
arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2005) |
Languages | Bokmal Norwegian (official), Nynorsk Norwegian (official), small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic |
Legal system | mixture of customary law, civil law system, and common law traditions; Supreme Court renders advisory opinions to legislature when asked; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | - |
Legislative branch | modified unicameral Parliament or Storting (169 seats; members are elected by popular vote by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 September 2005 (next to be held September 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor Party 32.7%, Progress Party 22.1%, Conservative Party 14.1%, Socialist Left Party 8.8%, Christian People's Party 6.8%, Center Party 6.5%, Liberal Party 5.9%, Red Electoral Alliance 1.2%, other 1.9%; seats by party - Labor Party 61, Progress Party 38, Conservative Party 23, Socialist Left Party 15, Christian People's Party 11, Center Party 11, Liberal Party 10 note: for certain purposes, the parliament divides itself into two chambers and elects one-fourth of its membership to an upper house or Lagting |
- |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.4 years
male: 76.78 years female: 82.17 years (2005 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% |
NA |
Location | Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 10 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue |
Merchant marine | total: 740 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 18,820,495 GRT/27,449,456 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 51, cargo 168, chemical tanker 142, combination ore/oil 20, container 3, liquefied gas 81, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 113, petroleum tanker 79, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 30, vehicle carrier 42 foreign-owned: 174 (Belgium 1, China 3, Cyprus 5, Denmark 28, Estonia 2, Finland 5, Germany 4, Hong Kong 52, Iceland 3, Italy 3, Japan 3, Lithuania 1, Monaco 1, Netherlands 4, Poland 2, Saudi Arabia 7, Singapore 10, Sweden 24, United States 16) registered in other countries: 1,117 (2005) |
- |
Military branches | Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy (includes Coastal Rangers and Coast Guard (Kystvakt)), Royal Norwegian Air Force (Kongelige Norske Luftforsvaret, RNoAF), Home Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4,033.5 million (2003) | $992.2 million |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2003) | - |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 17 May (1814) | - |
Nationality | noun: Norwegian(s)
adjective: Norwegian |
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
Natural hazards | rockslides, avalanches | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, titanium, pyrites, nickel, fish, timber, hydropower | phosphates, iron ore |
Net migration rate | 1.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | - |
Pipelines | condensate 411 km; gas 6,199 km; oil 2,213 km; oil/gas/water 746 km; unknown (oil/water) 38 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party [Aslaug Marie HAGA]; Christian People's Party [Dagfinn HOYBRATEN]; Coastal Party [Roy WAAGE]; Conservative Party [Erna SOLBERG]; Labor Party [Jens STOLTENBERG]; Liberal Party [Lars SPONHEIM]; Progress Party [Carl I. HAGEN]; Socialist Left Party [Kristin HALVORSEN] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 4,593,041 (July 2005 est.) | 273,008 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2005 est.) | NA |
Ports and harbors | Borg Havn, Bergen, Mo i Rana, Molde, Mongstad, Narvik, Oslo, Sture | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM at least 650, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 4,077 km
standard gauge: 4,077 km 1.435-m gauge (2,518 km electrified) (2004) |
- |
Religions | Church of Norway 85.7%, Pentecostal 1%, Roman Catholic 1%, other Christian 2.4%, Muslim 1.8%, other 8.1% (2004) | Muslim |
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: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern in all respects; one of the most advanced telecommunications networks in Europe
domestic: Norway has a domestic satellite system; moreover, the prevalence of rural areas encourages the wide use of cellular mobile systems instead of fixed-wire systems international: country code - 47; 2 buried coaxial cable systems; 4 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - NA Eutelsat, NA Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Norway shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden) (1999) |
general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.343 million (2002) | about 2,000 (1999 est.) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,163,400 (2003) | 0 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 360 (plus 2,729 repeaters) (1995) | NA |
Terrain | glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains broken by fertile valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply indented by fjords; arctic tundra in north | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.78 children born/woman (2005 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 4.3% (2004 est.) | NA% |