Poland (2007) | Northern Mariana Islands (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 16 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie wojewodztwo, Kujawsko-Pomorskie wojewodztwo, Lodzkie wojewodztwo, Lubelskie wojewodztwo, Lubuskie wojewodztwo, Malopolskie wojewodztwo, Mazowieckie wojewodztwo, Opolskie wojewodztwo, Podkarpackie wojewodztwo, Podlaskie wojewodztwo, Pomorskie wojewodztwo, Slaskie wojewodztwo, Swietokrzyskie wojewodztwo, Warminsko-Mazurskie wojewodztwo, Wielkopolskie wojewodztwo, Zachodniopomorskie wojewodztwo | 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: 15.5% (male 3,070,388/female 2,906,121)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 13,639,012/female 13,761,154) 65 years and over: 13.3% (male 1,964,429/female 3,177,137) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.3% (male 8,286; female 7,625)
15-64 years: 78.1% (male 25,579; female 35,534) 65 years and over: 1.6% (male 603; female 625) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, fruits, vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork, dairy | coconuts, fruits, vegetables; cattle |
Airports | 123 (2007) | 6 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 83
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 30 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 40
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 22 (2007) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 312,685 sq km
land: 304,465 sq km water: 8,220 sq km |
total: 477 sq km
land: 477 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Mexico | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Poland is an ancient nation that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16th century. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was comparatively tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a political force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, but Poland still faces the lingering challenges of high unemployment, underdeveloped and dilapidated infrastructure, and a poor rural underclass. Solidarity suffered a major defeat in the 2001 parliamentary elections when it failed to elect a single deputy to the lower house of Parliament, and the new leaders of the Solidarity Trade Union subsequently pledged to reduce the Trade Union's political role. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. With its transformation to a democratic, market-oriented country largely completed, Poland is an increasingly active member of Euro-Atlantic organizations. | 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. A new government and constitution went into effect in 1978. |
Birth rate | 9.94 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 19.77 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $63.7 billion
expenditures: $71.78 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $193 million
expenditures: $223 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY01/02 est.) |
Capital | name: Warsaw
geographic coordinates: 52 15 N, 21 00 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Saipan |
Climate | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers | tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October |
Coastline | 491 km | 1,482 km |
Constitution | adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997; passed by national referendum 25 May 1997; effective 17 October 1997 | Covenant Agreement effective 4 November 1986 and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Poland
conventional short form: Poland local long form: Rzeczpospolita Polska local short form: Polska |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
conventional short form: Northern Mariana Islands former: Mariana Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
Currency | - | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 9.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 2.3 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $121.5 billion (2006 est.) | 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 Victor ASHE
embassy: Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 00-540 Warsaw mailing address: American Embassy Warsaw, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5010 (pouch) telephone: [48] (22) 504-2000 FAX: [48] (22) 504-2688 consulate(s) general: Krakow |
- |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Janusz REITER
chancery: 2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-3800 through 3802 FAX: [1] (202) 328-6271 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
- |
Disputes - international | as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Poland must implement the strict Schengen border rules to restrict illegal immigration and trade along its eastern borders with Belarus and Ukraine | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.524 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004) | extensive funding from US |
Economy - overview | Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of economic liberalization since 1990 and today stands out as a success story among transition economies. In 2006, GDP grew 5.3%, based on rising private consumption, a 16.7% jump in investment, and burgeoning exports. Poland today has a thriving private sector which created more than 300,000 new jobs during 2006 alone. GDP per capita roughly equals that of the three Baltic states. Consumer price inflation - at 1.3% in 2006 - remains among the lowest in the EU. Since 2004, EU membership and access to EU structural funds has provided a major boost to the economy. Inflows of direct foreign investment exceeded $10 billion in 2006 alone - and more than $100 billion since 1990 - with major investments being announced by foreign firms in computer, consumer electronics, and automobile component production. In early 2006, Poland reached agreement with its EU partners that will permit it to benefit from EU funds totaling nearly $80 billion during 2007-13. Since 2002, even though the zloty appreciated 30%, Poland's exports more than doubled. Despite Poland's successes, more remains to be done. Unemployment, which stood at 15% in December 2006, is still the highest in the EU. An inefficient commercial court system, a rigid labor code, bureaucratic red tape, and persistent corruption keep the private sector from performing to its potential. Agriculture is handicapped by inefficient small farms and inadequate investment. Restructuring and privatization of the remaining state-owned industries, especially "sensitive sectors" such as coal, oil refining, railroads, and energy transmission and generation, have stalled due to concerns about loss of control over critical national assets and lay-offs. Reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have failed so far to reduce the government budget deficit, which was roughly 2.7 percent of GDP in 2006. Further progress in public finance depends mainly on reducing losses in Polish state enterprises, restraining entitlements, and overhauling the tax code. The previous Socialist-led government introduced a package of social and administrative spending cuts to reduce public spending by about $17 billion through 2007, but full implementation of the plan was trumped by election-year politics in 2005. The right-wing Law and Justice party won parliamentary elections in September 2005, and Lech KACZYNSKI won the presidential election in October, running on a state-interventionist fiscal and monetary platform. The new government has proceeded cautiously on economic matters, however, retaining, for example, the corporate income tax cuts initiated by the previous administration and indicating its intention to reduce the top personal income tax rate. | 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 employment of 17,500 mostly Chinese workers and sizable shipments to the US under duty and quota exemptions. |
Electricity - consumption | 120.4 billion kWh (2005) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 16.19 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh |
Electricity - imports | 5.002 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh |
Electricity - production | 146.2 billion kWh (2005) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: near Raczki Elblaskie -2 m
highest point: Rysy 2,499 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Agrihan 965 m |
Environment - current issues | situation has improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and increased environmental concern by post-Communist governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous wastes; pollution levels should continue to decrease as industrial establishments bring their facilities up to EU code, but at substantial cost to business and the government | contamination of groundwater on Saipan may contribute to disease; clean-up of landfill; protection of endangered species conflicts with development |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, 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, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Polish 96.7%, German 0.4%, Belarusian 0.1%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 2.7% (2002 census) | Chamorro, Carolinians and other Micronesians, Caucasian, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean |
Exchange rates | zlotych per US dollar - 3.1032 (2006), 3.2355 (2005), 3.6576 (2004), 3.8891 (2003), 4.08 (2002)
note: zlotych is the plural form of zloty |
the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Lech KACZYNSKI (since 23 December 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Donald TUSK (since 16 November 2007); Deputy Prime Ministers Waldemar PAWLAK (since 16 November 2007) and Grzegorz SCHETYNA (since 16 November 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister proposes, the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 9 and 23 October 2005 (next to be held in the fall 2010); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Sejm election results: Lech KACZYNSKI elected president; percent of popular vote - Lech KACZYNSKI 54%, Donald Tusk 46% |
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 Juan N. BABAUTA (since NA January 2002); Lieutenant Governor Diego T. BENAVENTE (since NA January 2002) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held NA November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005) election results: Juan N. BABAUTA elected governor in a four-way race; percent of vote - Juan N. BABAUTA (Republican Party) 49% |
Exports | 51,780 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Exports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 37.8%, intermediate manufactured goods 23.7%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 17.1%, food and live animals 7.6% (2003) | garments |
Exports - partners | Germany 27.2%, Italy 6.6%, France 6.2%, UK 5.7%, Czech Republic 5.6%, Russia 4.3% (2006) | US (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white | 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 |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $900 million
note: GDP estimate includes US subsidy (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4.5%
industry: 31.7% services: 63.8% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $12,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.1% (2006 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 52 00 N, 20 00 E | 15 12 N, 145 45 E |
Geography - note | historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain | strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean |
Heliports | 7 (2007) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | - | total: 362 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1991) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 27% (2002) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | despite diligent counternarcotics measures and international information sharing on cross-border crimes, a major illicit producer of synthetic drugs for the international market; minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and Latin American cocaine to Western Europe | - |
Imports | 480,300 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 38%, intermediate manufactured goods 21%, chemicals 14.8%, minerals, fuels, lubricants, and related materials 9.1% (2003) | food, construction equipment and materials, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Germany 29%, Russia 9.6%, Italy 6.4%, Netherlands 5.7%, France 5.4% (2006) | US, Japan (2000) |
Independence | 11 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) | none (commonwealth in political union with the US) |
Industrial production growth rate | 10.2% (2006 est.) | NA |
Industries | machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles | tourism, construction, garments, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 7.25 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2006 est.) | 1.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | Interpol (subbureau) |
Irrigated land | 1,000 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms) | Commonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court; Federal District Court |
Labor force | 16.94 million (2006 est.) | 6,006 total indigenous labor force; 2,699 unemployed; 28,717 foreign workers (June 1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 16.1%
industry: 29% services: 54.9% (2002) |
NA |
Land boundaries | total: 3,056 km
border countries: Belarus 416 km, Czech Republic 790 km, Germany 467 km, Lithuania 103 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 210 km, Slovakia 541 km, Ukraine 529 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 40.25%
permanent crops: 1% other: 58.75% (2005) |
arable land: 13.04%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 82.61% (2001) |
Languages | Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census) | English, Chamorro, Carolinian
note: 86% of population speaks a language other than English at home |
Legal system | based on a mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover Communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts, but rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal are final; court decisions can be appealed to the European Court of Justice in Strasbourg; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | based on US system, except for customs, wages, immigration laws, and taxation |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe consists of the Senate or Senat (upper house) (100 seats; members are elected by a majority vote on a provincial basis to serve four-year terms), and the Sejm (lower house) (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system of proportional representation to serve four-year terms); the designation of National Assembly is only used on those rare occasions when the two houses meet jointly
elections: Senate - last held 21 September 2007 (next to be held by September 2011); Sejm elections last held 21 September 2007 (next to be held by September 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PO 60, PiS 39, independents 1; Sejm - percent of vote by party - PO 41.5%, PiS 32.1%, SLD 13.2%, PSL 8.9%, other 4.3%; seats by party - PO 209, PiS 166, SLD 53, PSL 31, German minorities 1 note: one seat is assigned to ethnic minority parties in the Sejm only |
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 (18 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 1 November 2003 (next to be held 5 November 2005); House of Representatives - last held 1 November 2003 (next to be held 5 November 2005) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Covenant Party 9, Republican Party 7, Democratic Party 1, independent 1 note: the Northern Mariana Islands does not have a nonvoting delegate in the US Congress; instead, it has an elected official or "resident representative" located in Washington, DC; seats by party - Republican Party 1 (Pedro A. TENORIO) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.19 years
male: 71.18 years female: 79.44 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 75.67 years
male: 73.11 years female: 78.38 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 96% (1980 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, east of Germany | Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: defined by international treaties |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 11 ships (1000 GRT or over) 55,701 GRT/45,082 DWT
by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 2, passenger/cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Nigeria 1) registered in other countries: 102 (Antigua and Barbuda 2, Bahamas 15, Cyprus 18, Liberia 14, Malta 25, Norway 3, Panama 15, Slovakia 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1, Vanuatu 7) (2007) |
none |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | Armed Forces of the Polish Republic (Sily Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, SZRP): Land Forces (includes Navy (Marynarka Wojenna, MW)), Polish Air Force (Sily Powietrzne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, SPRP) (2006) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.71% (2005 est.) | - |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 3 May (1791) | Commonwealth Day, 8 January (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Pole(s)
adjective: Polish |
noun: NA
adjective: NA |
Natural hazards | flooding | active volcanoes on Pagan and Agrihan; typhoons (especially August to November) |
Natural resources | coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land | arable land, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 13,552 km; oil 1,384 km; refined products 777 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Catholic-National Movement or RKN [Antoni MACIEREWICZ]; Civic Platform or PO [Donald TUSK]; Conservative Peasants Party or SKL [Artur BALASZ]; Democratic Left Alliance or SLD [Wojciech OLEJNICZAK]; Democratic Party or PD [Janusz ONYSZKIEWICZ]; Dom Ojczysty (Fatherland Home); German Minority of Lower Silesia or MNSO [Henryk KROLL]; Law and Justice or PiS [Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI]; League of Polish Families or LPR [Roman GIERTYCH]; Peasant-Democratic Party or PLD [Roman JAGIELINSKI]; Polish Accord or PP [Jan LOPUSZANSKI]; Polish Peasant Party or PSL [Waldemar PAWLAK]; Ruch Patriotyczny or RP [Jan OLSZEWSKI]; Samoobrona or SO [Andrzej LEPPER]; Social Democratic Party of Poland or SDPL [Marek BOROWSKI]; Social Movement or RS [Krzysztof PIESIEWICZ]; Union of Labor or UP [Andrzej SPYCHALSKI] | Democratic Party [Dr. Carlos S. CAMACHO]; Republican Party [NA]; Covenant Party [Benigno R. FITIAL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | All Poland Trade Union Alliance or OPZZ (trade union) [Jan GUZ]; Roman Catholic Church [Cardinal Jozef GLEMP]; Solidarity Trade Union [Janusz SNIADEK] | NA |
Population | 38,518,241 (July 2007 est.) | 78,252 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 17% (2003 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | -0.046% (2007 est.) | 2.71% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Saipan, Tinian |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 14, FM 777, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 23,072 km
broad gauge: 629 km 1.524-m gauge standard gauge: 22,443 km 1.435-m gauge (20,555 km operational; 11,910 km electrified) (2006) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 89.8% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, other 0.3%, unspecified 8.3% (2002) | Christian (Roman Catholic majority, although traditional beliefs and taboos may still be found) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.991 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.618 male(s)/female total population: 0.941 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.72 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 0.79 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections |
Telephone system | general assessment: modernization of the telecommunications network has accelerated with market based competition finalized in 2003; fixed-line service, dominated by the former state-owned company, is dwarfed by the growth in wireless telephony
domestic: wireless service, available since 1993 (GSM service available since 1996) and provided by three nation-wide networks, has grown rapidly in response to the weak fixed-line coverage; third generation UMTS service available in urban areas; cellular coverage is generally good with more gaps in the east; fixed-line service is growing slowly and still lags in rural areas international: country code - 48; international direct dialing with automated exchanges; satellite earth station - 1 with access to Intelsat, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-670; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 11.475 million (2006) | 21,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 36.746 million (2006) | 3,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 40 (2006) | 1 (on Saipan and one station planned for Rota; in addition, two cable services on Saipan provide varied programming from satellite networks) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border | southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 1.26 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.33 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.9% (2006 est.) | NA |
Waterways | 3,997 km (navigable rivers and canals) (2006) | - |