225 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
225 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
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FAROE ISLANDS
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(part of the Danish realm)
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 1,400 km2; land area: 1,400 km2
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Comparative area: slightly less than eight times the size of
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Washington, DC
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Land boundaries: none
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Coastline: 764 km
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Maritime claims:
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Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
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Territorial sea: 3 nm
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Climate: mild winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy, windy
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Terrain: rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast
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Natural resources: fish
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Land use: arable land 2%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures
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0%; forest and woodland 0%; other 98%
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Environment: precipitous terrain limits habitation to small coastal
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lowlands; archipelago of 18 inhabited islands and a few uninhabited
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islets
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Note: strategically located along important sea lanes in
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northeastern Atlantic about midway between Iceland and Shetland Islands
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PEOPLE
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Population: 48,151 (July 1991), growth rate 0.9% (1991)
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Birth rate: 17 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 8 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 75 years male, 81 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 2.2 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Faroese (sing., pl.); adjective--Faroese
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Ethnic divisions: homogeneous Scandinavian population
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Religion: Evangelical Lutheran
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Language: Faroese (derived from Old Norse), Danish
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Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%)
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Labor force: 17,585; largely engaged in fishing, manufacturing,
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transportation, and commerce
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Organized labor: NA
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: none
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Type: part of the Danish realm; self-governing overseas
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administrative division of Denmark
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Capital: Torshavn
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Administrative divisions: none (self-governing overseas
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administrative division of Denmark)
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Independence: part of the Danish realm; self-governing overseas
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administrative division of Denmark
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Constitution: Danish
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Legal system: Danish
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National holiday: Birthday of the Queen, 16 April (1940)
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Executive branch: Danish monarch, high commissioner, prime
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minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet (Landsstyri)
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Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Logting)
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Judicial branch: none
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972),
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represented by High Commissioner Bent KLINTE (since NA);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister Atli P. DAM (since 15
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January 1991)
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Political parties and leaders:
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two-party ruling coalition--Social Democratic Party, Atli P. DAM;
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People's Party, Jogvan SUNDSTEIN;
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opposition--Cooperation Coalition Party, Pauli ELLEFSEN;
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Republican Party, Signer HANSEN;
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Progressive and Fishing Industry Party-Christian People's Party
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(PFIP-CPP), leader NA; Progress Party, leader NA; Home Rule Party, Hilmar
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KASS
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Suffrage: universal at age 20
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Elections:
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Faroese Parliament--last held 17 November 1990 (next to be held
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November 1994); results--Social Democratic 27.4%, People's Party 21.9%,
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Cooperation Coalition Party 18.9%, Republican Party 14.7%, Home Rule
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8.8%, PFIP-CPP 5.9%, other 2.4%;
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seats--(32 total) two-party coalition 17 (Social Democratic 10, People's
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Party 7), Cooperation Coalition Party 6, Republican Party 4,
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Home Rule 3, PFIP-CPP 2;
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Danish Parliament--last held on 12 December 1990 (next to be
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held by December 1994);
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results--percent of vote by party NA;
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seats--(2 total) Social Democratic 1, People's Party 1; note--the
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Faroe Islands elects two representatives to the Danish Parliament
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Communists: insignificant number
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Member of:
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Diplomatic representation: none (self-governing overseas
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administrative division of Denmark)
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Flag: white with a red cross outlined in blue that extends to the
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edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the
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hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)
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ECONOMY
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Overview: The Faroese, who have long been enjoying the affluent
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living standards of the Danes and other Scandinavians,
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now must cope with the decline of the all-important fishing
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industry and with an external debt twice the size of annual
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income. When the nations of the world extended their fishing
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zones to 200 nautical miles in the early 1970s, the Faroese
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no longer could continue their traditional long-distance fishing
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and subsequently depleted their own nearby fishing areas; one
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estimate foresaw a 25% drop in fish catch in 1990 alone. Half the
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fishing fleet is for sale, and the 22 fish-processing plants work
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at only half capacity. The government no longer can maintain its
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high level of spending on roads and tunnels, hospitals, sports
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facilities, and other social welfare programs.
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GDP: $662 million, per capita $14,000; real growth rate 3%
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(1989 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.0% (1988)
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Unemployment rate: NA%, but increasing
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Budget: revenues $442 million; expenditures $442 million, including
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capital expenditures of NA (1989)
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Exports: $343 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.);
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commodities--fish and fish products 88%, animal feedstuffs,
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transport equipment;
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partners--Denmark 16%, UK 14%, FRG 13.4%, US 10%, France 9%,
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Japan 5%
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Imports: $344 million (c.i.f., 1989 est.);
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commodities--machinery and transport equipment 30%,
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manufactures 16%, food and livestock 15%, chemicals 6%, fuels 4%;
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partners: Denmark 44%, Norway 16%, FRG 6%, Sweden 6%, US 3%
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External debt: $1.3 billion (1989)
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Industrial production: growth rate NA%
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Electricity: 80,000 kW capacity; 280 million kWh produced,
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5,910 kWh per capita (1989)
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Industries: fishing, shipbuilding, handicrafts
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Agriculture: accounts for 27% of GDP and employs 27% of labor
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force; principal crops--potatoes and vegetables; livestock--sheep; annual
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fish catch about 360,000 metric tons
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Economic aid: none
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Currency: Danish krone (plural--kroner); 1 Danish krone
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(DKr) = 100 ore
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Exchange rates: Danish kroner (DKr) per US$1--5.817 (January
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1991), 6.189 (1990), 7.310 (1989), 6.732 (1988), 6.840 (1987), 8.091
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(1986), 10.596 (1985)
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Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Highways: 200 km
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Ports: Torshavn, Tvoroyri
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Merchant marine: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 17,249
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GRT/11,887 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 2 cargo, 2
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roll-on/roll-off cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo; note--a subset of the
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Danish register
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Airports: 1 with permanent surface runway 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: good international communications; fair
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domestic facilities; 27,900 telephones; stations--1 AM, 3 (10 repeaters)
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FM, 3 (29 repeaters) TV; 3 coaxial submarine cables
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: no organized native military forces; only a small
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Police Force is maintained
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Note: defense is the responsibility of Denmark
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