Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/181.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 12.9 KB | 425 lines

@node Geography (Norway)
@section Geography (Norway)

@display

Location:
  Northern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden
Map references:
  Arctic Region, Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  324,220 km2
 land area:
  307,860 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly larger than New Mexico
Land boundaries:
  total 2,515 km, Finland 729 km, Sweden 1,619 km, Russia 167 km
Coastline:
  21,925 km (includes mainland 3,419 km, large islands 2,413 km, long fjords,
  numerous small islands, and minor indentations 16,093 km)
Maritime claims:
 contiguous zone:
  10 nm
 continental shelf:
  to depth of exploitation
 exclusive economic zone:
  200 nm
 territorial sea:
  4 nm
International disputes:
  territorial claim in Antarctica (Queen Maud Land); dispute between Denmark
  and Norway over maritime boundary in Arctic Ocean between Greenland and Jan
  Mayen is before the Interntional Court of Justice; maritime boundary dispute
  with Russia over portion of Barents Sea
Climate:
  temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current; colder interior;
  rainy year-round on west coast
Terrain:
  glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains broken by fertile
  valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply indented by fjords;
  arctic tundra in north
Natural resources:
  petroleum, copper, natural gas, pyrites, nickel, iron ore, zinc, lead, fish,
  timber, hydropower
Land use:
 arable land:
  3%
 permanent crops:
  0%
 meadows and pastures:
  0%
 forest and woodland:
  27%
 other:
  70%
Irrigated land:   950 km2 (1989)
Environment:
  air and water pollution; acid rain; note - strategic location adjacent to
  sea lanes and air routes in North Atlantic; one of most rugged and longest
  coastlines in world; Norway and Turkey only NATO members having a land
  boundary with Russia



@end display

@node Geography (Norway 2. usage)
@section Geography (Norway 2. usage)

@display

Note:
  about two-thirds mountains; some 50,000 islands off its much indented
  coastline



@end display

@node People (Norway)
@section People (Norway)

@display

Population:
  4,297,436 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  0.41% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  13.75 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  10.54 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  0.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  6.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  77.16 years
 male:
  73.79 years
 female:
  80.73 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  1.86 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  Norwegian(s)
 adjective:
  Norwegian
Ethnic divisions:
  Germanic (Nordic, Alpine, Baltic), Lapps 20,000
Religions:
  Evangelical Lutheran 87.8% (state church), other Protestant and Roman
  Catholic 3.8%, none 3.2%, unknown 5.2% (1980)
Languages:
  Norwegian (official)
 note:
  small Lapp- and Finnish-speaking minorities
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1976)
 total population:
  99%
 male:
  NA%
 female:
  NA%
Labor force:
  2.004 million (1992)
 by occupation:
  services 39.1%, commerce 17.6%, mining, oil, and manufacturing 16.0%,
  banking and financial services 7.6%, transportation and communications 7.8%,
  construction 6.1%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 5.5% (1989)



@end display

@node Government (Norway)
@section Government (Norway)

@display

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Kingdom of Norway
 conventional short form:
  Norway
 local long form:
  Kongeriket Norge
 local short form:
  Norge
Digraph:
  NO
Type:
  constitutional monarchy
Capital:
  Oslo
Administrative divisions:
  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
Dependent areas:
  Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard
Independence:
  26 October 1905 (from Sweden)
Constitution:
  17 May 1814, modified in 1884
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
National holiday:
  Constitution Day, 17 May (1814)
Political parties and leaders:
  Labor Party, Gro Harlem BRUNDTLAND; Conservative Party, Kaci Kullmann FIVE;
  Center Party, Anne ENGER LAHNSTEIN; Christian People's Party, Kjell Magne
  BONDEVIK; Socialist Left, Eric SOLHEIM; Norwegian Communist, Ingre IVERSEN;
  Progress Party, Carl I. HAGEN; Liberal, Odd Einar DORUM; Finnmark List,
  leader NA
Suffrage:   18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 Storting:
  last held on 11 September 1989 (next to be held 6 September 1993); results -
  Labor 34.3%, Conservative 22.2%, Progress 13.0%, Socialist Left 10.1%,
  Christian People's 8.5%, Center Party 6.6%, Finnmark List 0.3%, other 5%;
  seats - (165 total) Labor 63, Conservative 37, Progress 22, Socialist Left
  17, Christian People's 14, Center Party 11, Finnmark List 1
Executive branch:
  monarch, prime minister, State Council (cabinet)
Legislative branch:
  unicameral Parliament (Storting) with an Upper Chamber (Lagting) and a Lower
  Chamber (Odelsting)
Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court (Hoyesterett)
Leaders:
 Chief of State:
  King HARALD V (since 17 January 1991); Heir Apparent Crown Prince HAAKON
  MAGNUS (born 20 July 1973)



@end display

@node Government (Norway 2. usage)
@section Government (Norway 2. usage)

@display

 Head of Government:
  Prime Minister Gro Harlem BRUNDTLAND (since 3 November 1990)
Member of:
  AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN, COCOM, CSCE, EBRD,
  ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA,
  IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
  LORCS, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OECD, PCA, UN,
  UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMOGIP, UNOSOM,
  UNPROFOR, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission:
  Ambassador Kjeld VIBE
 chancery:
  2720 34th Street NW, Washington DC 20008
 telephone:
  [phone]
 FAX:
  [phone]
 consulates general:
  Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco
 consulate:
  Miami
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  (vacant)
 embassy:
  Drammensveien 18, 0244 Oslo 2
 mailing address:
  PSC 69, Box 1000, APO AE 09707
 telephone:
  [47] (2) 44-85-50
 FAX:   [47] (2) 43-07-77
Flag:
  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)



@end display

@node Economy (Norway)
@section Economy (Norway)

@display

Overview:
  Norway has a mixed economy involving 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) and
  extensively subsidizes agriculture, fishing, and areas with sparse
  resources. Norway also maintains an extensive welfare system that helps
  propel public sector expenditures to slightly more than 50% of the GDP and
  results in one of the highest average tax burdens in the world (54%). A
  small country with a high dependence on international trade, Norway is
  basically an exporter of raw materials and semiprocessed goods, with an
  abundance of small- and medium-sized firms, and is ranked among the major
  shipping nations. The country is richly endowed with natural resources -
  petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests, and minerals - and is highly dependent
  on its oil sector to keep its economy afloat. Although one of the
  government's main priorities is to reduce this dependency, this situation is
  not likely to improve for years to come. The government also hopes to reduce
  unemployment and strengthen and diversify the economy through tax reform and
  a series of expansionary budgets. The budget deficit is expected to hit a
  record 8% of GDP because of welfare spending and bail-outs of the banking
  system. Unemployment continues at record levels of over 10% - including
  those in job programs - because of the weakness of the economy outside the
  oil sector. Overall economic growth is expected to be around 2% in 1993
  while inflation is likely to rise slightly to 4%. Oslo, a member of the
  European Free Trade Area, has applied for EC membership and continues to
  deregulate and harmonize with EC regulations to prepare for the European
  Economic Area (EEA) - which creates an EC/EFTA market with free movement of
  capital, goods, services, and labor - to take effect in late 1993 and its EC
  bid.
National product:
  GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $76.1 billion (1992)
National product real growth rate:
  2.9% (1992)
National product per capita:
  $17,700 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  2.3% (1992)
Unemployment rate:
  5.9% (excluding people in job-training programs) (1992)
Budget:
  revenues $50.6 billion; expenditures $57.0 billion, including capital
  expenditures of $NA (1992)
Exports:
  $35.3 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
 commodities:
  petroleum and petroleum products 37.8%, metals and products 10.7%, natural
  gas 7.3%, fish 6.6%, chemicals 6.3%, ships 5.4%
 partners:
  EC 67%, Nordic countries 18.2%, developing countries 7.9%, US 5.1%, Japan
  1.6% (1992)
Imports:
  $26.8 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
 commodities:
  machinery, fuels and lubricants, transportation equipment, chemicals,
  foodstuffs, clothing, ships
 partners:
  EC 48.7%, Nordic countries 26.8%, developing countries 9.3%, US 8.6%, Japan
  6.3% (1992)
External debt:
  $6.5 billion (1992 est.)



@end display

@node Economy (Norway 2. usage)
@section Economy (Norway 2. usage)

@display

Industrial production:
  growth rate 7.3% (1992)
Electricity:
  26,900,000 kW capacity; 111,000 million kWh produced, 25,850 kWh per capita
  (1992)
Industries:
  petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products,
  metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing
Agriculture:
  accounts for 2.6% of GDP and 5.5% of labor force; among world's top 10
  fishing nations; livestock output exceeds value of crops; over half of food
  needs imported; fish catch of 1.76 million metric tons in 1989
Illicit drugs:
  increasingly used as transshipment point for Latin American cocaine to
  Europe and gateway for Asian heroin shipped via the CIS and Baltic states
  for the European market
Economic aid:
  donor - ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $4.4 billion
Currency:
  1 Norwegian krone (NKr) = 100 re
Exchange rates:
  Norwegian kroner (NKr) per US$1 - 6.8774 (January 1993), 6.2145 (1992),
  6.4829 (1991), 6.2597 (1990), 6.9045 (1989), 6.5170 (1988)
Fiscal year:
  calendar year



@end display

@node Communications (Norway)
@section Communications (Norway)

@display

Railroads:
  4,223 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; Norwegian State Railways (NSB) operates
  4,219 km (2,450 km electrified and 96 km double track); 4 km other
Highways:
  79,540 km total; 38,580 km paved; 40,960 km gravel, crushed stone, and earth
Inland waterways:
  1,577 km along west coast; 2.4 m draft vessels maximum
Pipelines:   refined products 53 km
Ports:
  Oslo, Bergen, Fredrikstad, Kristiansand, Stavanger, Trondheim
Merchant marine:
  829 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 22,312,412 GRT/38,532,109 DWT;
  includes 13 passenger, 20 short-sea passenger, 106 cargo, 2 passenger-cargo,
  19 refrigerated cargo, 15 container, 49 roll-on/roll-off, 23 vehicle
  carrier, 1 railcar carrier, 174 oil tanker, 91 chemical tanker, 82 liquefied
  gas, 25 combination ore/oil, 201 bulk, 8 combination bulk; note - the
  government has created a captive register, the Norwegian International Ship
  Register (NIS), as a subset of the Norwegian register; ships on the NIS
  enjoy many benefits of flags of convenience and do not have to be crewed by
  Norwegians; the majority of ships (777) under the Norwegian flag are now
  registered with the NIS
Airports:
 total:
  103
 usable:
  102
 with permanent-surface runways:
  63
 with runways over 3,659 m:
  0
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  12
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  16
Telecommunications:
  high-quality domestic and international telephone, telegraph, and telex
  services; 2 buried coaxial cable systems; 3,102,000 telephones; broadcast
  stations - 46 AM, 350 private and 143 government FM, 54 (2,100 repeaters)
  TV; 4 coaxial submarine cables; 3 communications satellite earth stations
  operating in the EUTELSAT, INTELSAT (1 Atlantic Ocean), MARISAT, and
  domestic systems



@end display

@node Defense Forces (Norway)
@section Defense Forces (Norway)

@display

Branches:
  Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy, Royal Norwegian Air Force, Home Guard
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 1,120,744; fit for military service 934,968; reach military
  age (20) annually 31,903 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $3.8 billion, 3.4% of GDP (1992)




@end display