Rwanda (2007) | Iceland (2007) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 5 provinces (in French - provinces, singular - province; in Kinyarwanda - prefigintara for singular and plural); East, Kigali, North, South, West | 8 regions; Austurland, Hofudhborgarsvaedhi, Nordhurland Eystra, Nordhurland Vestra, Sudhurland, Sudhurnes, Vestfirdhir, Vesturland |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.9% (male 2,082,474/female 2,065,251)
15-64 years: 55.7% (male 2,748,189/female 2,765,767) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 98,796/female 147,032) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.4% (male 32,759/female 31,845)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 102,161/female 99,411) 65 years and over: 11.8% (male 16,162/female 19,593) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | potatoes, green vegetables; mutton, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 99 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 94
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 63 (2007) |
Area | total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 103,000 sq km
land: 100,250 sq km water: 2,750 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than Kentucky |
Background | In 1959, three years before independence from Belgium, the majority ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the next several years, thousands of Tutsis were killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries. The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with several political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic tensions, culminating in April 1994 in the genocide of roughly 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. The Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutu regime and ended the killing in July 1994, but approximately 2 million Hutu refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and the former Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but several thousand remained in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (the former Zaire) and formed an extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF tried in 1990. Despite substantial international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 and its first post-genocide presidential and legislative elections in August and September 2003 - the country continues to struggle to boost investment and agricultural output, and ethnic reconciliation is complicated by the real and perceived Tutsi political dominance. Kigali's increasing centralization and intolerance of dissent, the nagging Hutu extremist insurgency across the border, and Rwandan involvement in two wars in recent years in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts to escape its bloody legacy. | Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Limited home rule from Denmark was granted in 1874 and complete independence attained in 1944. Literacy, longevity, income, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards. |
Birth rate | 40.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 13.57 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $682.4 million
expenditures: $714.6 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.) |
revenues: $7.603 billion
expenditures: $6.737 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | name: Kigali
geographic coordinates: 1 57 S, 30 04 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Reykjavik
geographic coordinates: 64 09 N, 21 57 W time difference: UTC (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 4,970 km |
Constitution | new constitution passed by referendum 26 May 2003 | 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944; amended many times |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Rwanda
conventional short form: Rwanda local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda former: Ruanda, German East Africa |
conventional long form: Republic of Iceland
conventional short form: Iceland local long form: Lydveldid Island local short form: Island |
Death rate | 14.91 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.77 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2004 est.) | $3.073 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael ARIETTI
embassy: 337 Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali mailing address: B. P. 28, Kigali telephone: [250] 50 56 01 through 03 FAX: [250] 57 2128 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Carol VAN VOORST
embassy: Laufasvegur 21, 101 Reykjavik mailing address: US Department of State, 5640 Reykjavik Place, Washington, D.C. 20521-5640 telephone: [354] 562-9100 FAX: [354] 562-9118 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Zac NSENGA
chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 232-2882 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Albert JONSSON
chancery: Suite 1200, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1704 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6653 FAX: [1] (202) 265-6656 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | fighting among ethnic groups - loosely associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces in Great Lakes region transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda - abated substantially from a decade ago due largely to UN peacekeeping, international mediation, and efforts by local governments to create civil societies; nonetheless, 57,000 Rwandan refugees still reside in 21 African states, including Zambia, Gabon, and 20,000 who fled to Burundi in 2005 and 2006 to escape drought and recriminations from traditional courts investigating the 1994 massacres; the 2005 DROC and Rwanda border verification mechanism to stem rebel actions on both sides of the border remains in place | Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm |
Economic aid - donor | - | $6.7 million (2004) |
Economic aid - recipient | $576 million (2005) | - |
Economy - overview | Rwanda is a poor rural country with about 90% of the population engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture. It is the most densely populated country in Africa and is landlocked with few natural resources and minimal industry. Primary foreign exchange earners are coffee and tea. The 1994 genocide decimated Rwanda's fragile economic base, severely impoverished the population, particularly women, and eroded the country's ability to attract private and external investment. However, Rwanda has made substantial progress in stabilizing and rehabilitating its economy to pre-1994 levels, although poverty levels are higher now. GDP has rebounded and inflation has been curbed. Despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem, food production often does not keep pace with population growth, requiring food imports. Rwanda continues to receive substantial aid money and obtained IMF-World Bank Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative debt relief in 2005-06. Rwanda also received Millennium Challenge Account Threshold status in 2006. Kigali's high defense expenditures have caused tension between the government and international donors and lending agencies. Energy shortages, instability in neighboring states, and lack of adequate transportation linkages to other countries continue to handicap growth. | Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural resources (except for abundant geothermal power), the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides nearly 70% of export earnings and employs 6% of the work force. The economy remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon. Government policies include reducing the current account deficit, limiting foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and fishing policies, and diversifying the economy. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism and whale watching. Since 2000 growth has varied from -1% in 2002 to 8% in 2004. The 2006 closure of the US military base at Keflavik had very little impact on the national economy; Iceland's low unemployment rate aided former base employees in finding alternate employment. |
Electricity - consumption | 198.4 million kWh (2005) | 8.152 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 10 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 120 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 95 million kWh (2005) | 8.533 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,110 m (at Vatnajokull glacier) |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater treatment |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Transboundary Air Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 84%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 15%, Twa (Pygmy) 1% | homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6% |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 560 (2006), 610 (2005), 574.62 (2004), 537.66 (2003), 476.33 (2002) | Icelandic kronur per US dollar - 70.195 (2006), 62.982 (2005), 70.192 (2004), 76.709 (2003), 91.662 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Bernard MAKUZA (since 8 March 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: President elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); elections last held 25 August 2003 (next to be held in 2010) election results: Paul KAGAME elected president in first direct popular vote; Paul KAGAME 95.05%, Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%, Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33% |
chief of state: President Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON (since 1 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Geir H. HAARDE (since 7 June 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: president, largely a ceremonial post, is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (no term limits); election last held 26 June 2004 (next to be held in June 2008); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually the prime minister election results: Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON 85.6%, Baldur AGUSTSSON 12.5%, Astthor MAGNUSSON 1.9% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | fish and fish products 70%, aluminum, animal products, ferrosilicon, diatomite |
Exports - partners | China 10.3%, Germany 9.7%, US 4.3% (2006) | Netherlands 16.5%, UK 15.7%, Germany 15%, US 10.8%, Spain 6.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of sky blue (top, double width), yellow, and green, with a golden sun with 24 rays near the fly end of the blue band | blue with a red cross outlined in white extending 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: 39.9%
industry: 20.3% services: 39.7% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 5.6%
industry: 25% services: 69.4% (2006 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2006 est.) | 2.6% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 65 00 N, 18 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural | strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 38.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA bbl/day | 17,450 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | Kenya 19.6%, Germany 7.8%, Uganda 6.8%, Belgium 5.1% (2006) | US 12.8%, Germany 12.3%, Norway 7.1%, Sweden 6.9%, Denmark 6.1%, UK 5.3%, China 5.3%, Netherlands 4.8%, Japan 4.1% (2006) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | 5% (2006 est.) |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production; geothermal power, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 85.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.41 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 3.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.41 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.8% (2006 est.) | 6.7% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (2003) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; Provincial Courts; District Courts; mediation committees | Supreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice) |
Labor force | 4.6 million (2000) | 175,000 (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000) |
agriculture: 5.1%
industry: 23% services: 71.4% (2005) |
Land boundaries | total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.56%
permanent crops: 10.25% other: 44.19% (2005) |
arable land: 0.07%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.93% (2005) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken |
Legal system | based on German and Belgian civil law systems and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | civil law system based on Danish law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of Senate (26 seats; 12 members elected by local councils, 8 appointed by the president, 4 by the Political Organizations Forum, 2 represent institutions of higher learning; to serve eight-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies (80 seats; 53 members elected by popular vote, 24 women elected by local bodies, 3 selected by youth and disability organizations; to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - members appointed as part of the transitional government (next to be held in 2011); Chamber of Deputies - last held 29 September 2003 (next to be held in 2008) election results: seats by party under the 2003 Constitution - RPF 40, PSD 7, PL 6, additional 27 members indirectly elected |
unicameral Parliament or Althing (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 May 2007 (next to be held by May 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - Independence Party 36.6%, Social Democratic Alliance 26.8%, Progressive Party 11.7%, Left-Green Movement 14.3%, Liberal Party 7.3%, other 3.3%; seats by party - Independence Party 25, Social Democratic Alliance 18, Progressive Party 7, Left-Green Alliance 9, Liberal Party 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 48.99 years
male: 47.87 years female: 50.16 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 80.43 years
male: 78.33 years female: 82.62 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4% male: 76.3% female: 64.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK |
Map references | Africa | Arctic Region |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | - | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 4,704 GRT/729 DWT
by type: passenger/cargo 2 registered in other countries: 41 (Antigua and Barbuda 9, Bahamas 1, Belize 1, Faroe Islands 4, Gibraltar 1, Malta 7, Norway 3, St Vincent and The Grenadines 15) (2007) |
Military - note | - | under a 1951 bilateral agreement, Iceland's defense was provided by a US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered in Keflavik; in October 2006, all US military forces in Iceland were withdrawn; nonetheless, the US and Iceland signed a Joint Understanding to strengthen their bilateral defense relationship, including regular security consultations, military communications in the event of national emergencies, annual bilateral exercises on Icelandic territory, and future bilateral and NATO support to four Iceland Air Defense System (IADS) radar sites |
Military branches | Rwandan Defense Forces: Army, Air Force | no regular military forces; Icelandic National Police (2006) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2006 est.) | 0% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Independence Day, 17 June (1944) |
Nationality | noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Icelander(s)
adjective: Icelandic |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | earthquakes and volcanic activity |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite |
Net migration rate | 2.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 1.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
People - note | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa | - |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Alfred MUKEZAMFURA]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR [Celestin KABANDA] (officially banned); Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Prosper HIGIRO]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned); Rwandan Patriotic Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Vincent BIRUTA] | Independence Party or IP [Geir H. HAARDE]; Left-Green Movement or LGM [Steingrimur SIGFUSSON]; Liberal Party or LP [Gudjon KRISTJANSSON]; Progressive Party or PP [Gudni AGUSTSSON]; Social Democratic Alliance or SDA [Ingibjorg Solrun GISLADOTTIR] (includes People's Alliance or PA, Social Democratic Party or SDP, Women's List) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | NA |
Population | 9,907,509
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
301,931 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.766% (2007 est.) | 0.824% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 8 (two main FM programs are broadcast through a system of repeaters, three international FM programs include the BBC, VOA, and Deutchewelle), shortwave 1 (2005) | AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) | Lutheran Church of Iceland 85.5%, Reykjavik Free Church 2.1%, Roman Catholic Church 2%, Hafnarfjorour Free Church 1.5%, other Christian 2.7%, other or unspecified 3.8%, unaffiliated 2.4% (2004) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.008 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.994 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.672 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.029 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.028 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.825 male(s)/female total population: 1.002 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: telephone system primarily serves business and government
domestic: the capital, Kigali, is connected to the centers of the provinces by microwave radio relay and, recently, by cellular telephone service; much of the network depends on wire and HF radiotelephone international: country code - 250; international connections employ microwave radio relay to neighboring countries and satellite communications to more distant countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) in Kigali (includes telex and telefax service) |
general assessment: telecommunications infrastructure is modern and fully digitized, with satellite-earth stations, fiber-optic cables, and an extensive broadband network
domestic: liberalization of the telecommunications sector beginning in the late 1990s has led to increased competition especially in the mobile services segment of the market international: country code - 354; the CANTAT-3 and FARICE-1 submarine cable systems provide connectivity to Canada, the Faroe Islands, UK, Denmark, and Germany; a planned new section of the Hibernia-Atlantic submarine cable will provide additional connectivity to Canada, US, and Ireland; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Iceland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (2005) | 193,700 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 290,000 (2005) | 328,500 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2004) | 14 (plus 156 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords |
Total fertility rate | 5.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.91 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 1.3% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2006) | - |