Tuvalu (2004) | Norway (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | none | 19 provinces (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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.3% (male 1,828; female 1,761)
15-64 years: 63.7% (male 3,530; female 3,770) 65 years and over: 5% (male 227; female 352) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 19.9% (male 465,320; female 439,095)
15-64 years: 65.2% (male 1,501,608; female 1,462,590) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 281,554; female 395,956) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts; fish | barley, wheat, potatoes; pork, beef, veal, milk; fish |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 102 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 66
2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 26 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 36
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2002) |
Area | total: 26 sq km
land: 26 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 324,220 sq km
land: 307,860 sq km water: 16,360 sq km |
Area - comparative | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than New Mexico |
Background | In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over the next dozen years. | 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. Norway remained neutral in World War I and proclaimed its neutrality at the outset of World War II. Nevertheless, it was not able to avoid a five-year occupation by Nazi Germany (1940-1945). 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. |
Birth rate | 21.63 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 12.17 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $22.5 million
expenditures: $11.2 million, including capital expenditures of $4.2 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $71.7 billion
expenditures: $57.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Funafuti; note - administrative offices are located in Vaiaku Village on Fongafale Islet | Oslo |
Climate | tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) | temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current; colder interior with increased precipitation and colder summers; rainy year-round on west coast |
Coastline | 24 km | 21,925 km (includes mainland 3,419 km, large islands 2,413 km, long fjords, numerous small islands, and minor indentations 16,093 km) |
Constitution | 1 October 1978 | 17 May 1814, modified in 1884 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands note: "Tuvalu" means "group of eight," referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Norway
conventional short form: Norway local long form: Kongeriket Norge local short form: Norge |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar | Norwegian krone (NOK) |
Death rate | 7.24 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.72 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $0 (Norway is a net external creditor) |
Dependent areas | - | Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US - the country's only diplomatic post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does, however, have a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, New York 10017, telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534 | 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, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | 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 |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.4 billion (1998) |
Economic aid - recipient | $13 million ; note - major donors are Australia, Japan, and the US (1999 est.) | - |
Economy - overview | Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average, visit Tuvalu annually. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals, this Fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu, because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%. In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and in 2000, from the lease of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could increase substantially over the next decade. With merchandise exports only a fraction of merchandise imports, continued reliance must be placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and investment income from overseas assets. | 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; in 1999, oil and gas accounted for 35% 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. 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 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 $43 billion. GDP growth was a lackluster 1% in 2002 and 2003 against the background of a faltering European economy. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 115.3 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 7.162 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 10.76 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 120.1 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 0.4%
hydro: 99.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Norwegian Sea 0 m
highest point: Galdhopiggen 2,469 m |
Environment - current issues | since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is very concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground water table; in 2000, the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary | water pollution; acid rain damaging forests and adversely affecting lakes, threatening fish stocks; air pollution from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4% | Norwegian, Sami 20,000 |
Exchange rates | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419, (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999) | Norwegian kroner per US dollar - 7.98 (2002), 8.99 (2001), 8.8 (2000), 7.8 (1999), 7.55 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Faimalaga LUKA (since 9 September 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA (since 11 October 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament; election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held following parliamentary elections in 2006) election results: Saufatu SOPOANGA resigned parliamentary seat on 27 August 2004 following no-confidence vote on 25 August 2004; succeeded by Deputy Prime Minister Maatia TOAFA in an acting capacity on 27 August 2004; Maatia TOAFA confirmed Prime Minister in a Parliamentary election (8-7 vote) on 11 Ocotober 2004 |
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 Kjell Magne BONDEVIK (since 19 October 2001) 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 |
Exports | $1 million f.o.b. (2002) | 3.466 million bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copra, fish | petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, ships, fish |
Exports - partners | UK 37.5%, Poland 19.1%, Philippines 9.2%, Australia 9.1%, Fiji 6.2% (2003) | UK 18.1%, Germany 13.8%, France 11%, US 9.2%, Netherlands 8.2%, Sweden 8% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands | 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 | purchasing power parity - $12.2 million NA (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $149.1 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 1.9%
industry: 30.8% services: 67.3% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $33,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 S, 178 00 E | 62 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the coral atolls - Nanumea, Nui, Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti, and Nukulaelae - have lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons; Niulakita does not have a lagoon | 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 |
Highways | total: 8 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1999 est.) |
total: 91,454 km
paved: 69,505 km (including 143 km of expressways) unpaved: 21,949 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 21.8% (1995) |
Imports | $79 million c.i.f. (2002) | 88,870 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Fiji 47.3%, Australia 13.9%, Poland 10.8%, Germany 10.2%, Japan 8%, New Zealand 6.2% (2003) | Sweden 17.7%, Germany 13.4%, UK 7.8%, Denmark 7.7%, US 5.7%, Netherlands 5.3%, France 4.2%, Italy 4% (2002) |
Independence | 1 October 1978 (from UK) | 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 | NA | 1.2% (2002 est.) |
Industries | fishing, tourism, copra | petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 20.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 3.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2000 est.) | 1.3% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, IFRCS (observer), IMO, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, 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, NAM (guest), NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 13 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,270 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction) | Supreme Court or Hoyesterett (justices appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 7,000 (2001 est.) | 2.4 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and atolls and from wages sent home by those abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) | services 74%, industry 22%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 4% (1995) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,544 km
border countries: Finland 729 km, Sweden 1,619 km, Russia 196 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 2.94%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.06% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) | Norwegian (official)
note: small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities |
Legal system | NA | 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 | unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 15 |
modified unicameral Parliament or Storting (165 seats; members are elected by popular vote by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor Party 24.3%, Conservative Party 21.2%, Progress Party 14.6%, Socialist Left Party 12.5%, Christian People's Party 12.4%, Center Party 5.6%, Liberal Party 3.9%, Coastal Party 1.7%, other 3.8%; seats by party - Labor Party 43, Conservative Party 38, Progress Party 26, Socialist Left Party 23, Christian People's Party 22, Center Party 10, Liberal Party 2, Coastal Party 1 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: 67.66 years
male: 65.47 years female: 69.96 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 79.09 years
male: 76.15 years female: 82.22 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia | Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 10 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 4 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 54,993 GRT/86,048 DWT
by type: cargo 3, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: Germany 4, Singapore 1, Thailand 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 714 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 20,247,207 GRT/30,860,236 DWT
ships by type: bulk 68, cargo 136, chemical tanker 125, combination bulk 5, combination ore/oil 32, container 19, liquefied gas 86, multi-function large load carrier 1, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 127, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 44, short-sea passenger 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 34 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Denmark 14, Germany 11, Greece 10, Hong Kong 7, Iceland 2, Japan 11, Lithuania 1, Monaco 42, Poland 1, Saudi Arabia 3, Singapore 10, Sweden 42, Switzerland 2, UK 4, US 5 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (includes Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations) | Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy (including Coast Artillery and Coast Guard), Royal Norwegian Air Force, Home Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $3.113 billion (FY98/99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 2.13% (2002) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,099,314 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 910,628 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 27,249 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) | Constitution Day, 17 May (1814); note - on 14 January 1814 Denmark ceded Norway to Sweden; resisting Swedish domination, Norwegians adopted a new constitution four months later; on 14 August 1814 Norway was proclaimed independent but in union with Sweden; on 7 June 1905 Norway declared the union with Sweden dissolved |
Nationality | noun: Tuvaluan(s)
adjective: Tuvaluan |
noun: Norwegian(s)
adjective: Norwegian |
Natural hazards | severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three cyclones; low level of islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level | rockslides, avalanches |
Natural resources | fish | petroleum, copper, natural gas, pyrites, nickel, iron ore, zinc, lead, fish, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 2.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 411 km; gas 6,199 km; oil 2,213 km; oil/gas/water 746 km; unknown (oil/water) 38 km; water 96 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings | Center Party [Aslaug Marie HAGA]; Christian People's Party [Valgerd Svarstad HAUGLAND]; Coastal Party [Steinar BASTESEN]; Conservative Party [Jan PETERSEN]; Labor Party [Jens STOLTENBERG]; Liberal Party [Lars SPONHEIM]; Progress Party [Carl I. HAGEN]; Socialist Left Party [Kristin HALVORSEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 11,468 (July 2004 est.) | 4,546,123 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.44% (2004 est.) | 0.46% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Funafuti, Nukufetau | Bergen, Drammen, Floro, Hammerfest, Harstad, Haugesund, Kristiansand, Larvik, Narvik, Oslo, Porsgrunn, Stavanger, Tromso, Trondheim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1999) | AM 5, FM at least 650, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 4,178 km
standard gauge: 4,178 km 1.435-m gauge (2,518 km electrified) (2002) |
Religions | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% | Evangelical Lutheran 86% (state church), other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, other 1%, none and unknown 10% (1997) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: country code - 688 |
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: 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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 700 (2002) | 2.735 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 2,080,408 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1997) | 360 (plus 2,729 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls | glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains broken by fertile valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply indented by fjords; arctic tundra in north |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 3.9% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,577 km (along west coast)
note: navigable by 2.4 m maximum draft vessels |