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Background:
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The
population of the Faroe Islands is largely descended
from Viking settlers who arrived in the 9th century. The
islands have been connected politically to Denmark since
the 14th century. A high degree of self-government was
attained in 1948. |
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Location:
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Northern
Europe, island group between the Norwegian Sea and the
North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from
Iceland to Norway |
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Geographic coordinates:
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62 00 N,
7 00 W |
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Map references:
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Europe
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Area:
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total:
1,399 sq km
land: 1,399 sq km
water: 0 sq km (some lakes and streams) |
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Area - comparative:
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eight
times the size of Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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1,117 km
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or
median line
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed
boundaries or median line |
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Climate:
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mild
winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy, windy
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Terrain:
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rugged,
rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Slaettaratindur 882 m |
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Natural resources:
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fish,
whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 2.14%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 97.86% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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0 sq km
(1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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NA |
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Environment - current issues:
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NA |
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Geography - note:
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archipelago of 17 inhabited islands and one uninhabited
island, and a few uninhabited islets; strategically
located along important sea lanes in northeastern
Atlantic; precipitous terrain limits habitation to small
coastal lowlands |
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Population:
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46,962
(July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 21.3% (male 4,997/female 4,999)
15-64 years: 64.9% (male 16,120/female 14,360)
65 years and over: 13.8% (male 2,923/female
3,563) (2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
35.11 years
male: 34.64 years
female: 35.68 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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0.62%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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13.97
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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8.69
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0.94
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
6.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.54 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 79.21 years
male: 75.77 years
female: 82.67 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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2.2
children born/woman (2005 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA% |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Faroese (singular and plural)
adjective: Faroese |
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Ethnic groups:
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Scandinavian |
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Religions:
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Evangelical Lutheran |
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Languages:
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Faroese
(derived from Old Norse), Danish |
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Literacy:
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definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA%
note: probably the same as Denmark proper |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Faroe Islands
local long form: none
local short form: Foroyar |
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Dependency status:
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part of
the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas
administrative division of Denmark since 1948 |
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Government type:
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NA |
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Capital:
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Torshavn
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Administrative divisions:
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none
(part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas
administrative division of Denmark); there are no
first-order administrative divisions as defined by the
US Government, but there are 49 municipalities |
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Independence:
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none
(part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas
administrative division of Denmark) |
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National holiday:
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Olaifest
(Olavasoka), 29 July |
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Constitution:
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5 June
1953 (Danish constitution) |
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Legal system:
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Danish
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Suffrage:
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18 years
of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief
of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14
January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Birgit
KLEIS, chief administrative officer (since 1 November
2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Joannes
EIDESGAARD (since 3 February 2004)
cabinet: Landsstyri appointed by the prime
minister
elections: the monarch is hereditary; high
commissioner appointed by the monarch; following
legislative elections, the leader of the majority party
or the leader of the majority coalition is usually
elected prime minister by the Faroese Parliament;
election last held 20 January 2004 (next to be held no
later than January 2008)
election results: Joannes EIDESGAARD elected
prime minister; percent of parliamentary vote - NA%
note: coalition of Social Democrats, Union Party,
and People's Party |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Faroese Parliament or Logting (32 seats;
members are elected by popular vote on a proportional
basis from the seven constituencies to serve four-year
terms)
elections: last held 20 January 2004 (next to be
held no later than January 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party -
Union Party 23.7%, Social Democrats 21.8%, Republican
Party 21.7%, People's Party 20.6%, Center Party 5.2%,
Independence Party 4.6%; seats by party - Union Party 7,
Social Democrats 7, Republican Party 8, People's Party
7, Center Party 2, Independence Party 1
note: election of 2 seats to the Danish
Parliament was last held on 8 February 2005 (next to be
held February 2009); results - percent of vote by party
- NA; seats by party - Republican Party 1, People's
Party 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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none |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Center
Party [Jenis A. RANA]; Independence Party [Kari P.
HOJGAARD]; People's Party [Anfinn KALLSBERG]; Republican
Party [Hogni HOYDAL]; Social Democratic Party [Joannes
EIDESGAARD]; Union Party [Kaj Oeo JOHANNESEN] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International organization participation:
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IMO
(associate), NC, NIB, UPU |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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none
(self-governing overseas administrative division of
Denmark) |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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none
(self-governing overseas administrative division of
Denmark) |
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Flag description:
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white
with a red cross outlined in blue extending to the edges
of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted
toward the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog
(Danish flag) |
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Economy - overview:
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The
Faroese economy has had a strong performance since 1994,
mostly as a result of increasing fish landings and high
and stable export prices. Unemployment is minimal and
there are signs of labor shortages in several sectors.
The positive economic development has helped the Faroese
Home Rule Government produce increasing budget
surpluses, which in turn has helped to reduce the large
public debt, most of it owed to Denmark. However, the
total dependence on fishing makes the Faroese economy
extremely vulnerable, and the present fishing efforts
appear in excess of what is a sustainable level of
fishing in the long term. Oil finds close to the Faroese
area give hope for deposits in the immediate Faroese
area, which may eventually lay the basis for a more
diversified economy and thus lessen dependence on Danish
economic assistance. Aided by a substantial annual
subsidy (15% of GDP) from Denmark, the Faroese have a
standard of living not far below the Danes and other
Scandinavians. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$1
billion (2001 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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10% (2001
est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $22,000 (2001 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 27%
industry: 11%
services: 62% (1999) |
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Labor force:
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24,250
(October 2000) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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fishing,
fish processing, and manufacturing 33%, construction and
private services 33%, public services 34% |
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Unemployment rate:
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1%
(October 2000) |
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Population below poverty line:
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NA% |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest
10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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5.1%
(1999) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $488 million
expenditures: $484 million, including capital
expenditures of $21 million (1999) |
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Agriculture - products:
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milk,
potatoes, vegetables; sheep; salmon, other fish |
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Industries:
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fishing,
fish processing, small ship repair and refurbishment,
handicrafts |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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8% (1999
est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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220
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 62.4%
hydro: 37.6%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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204.6
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh
(2002) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh
(2002) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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4,500
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Exports:
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$408
million f.o.b. (2002) |
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Exports - commodities:
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fish and
fish products 94%, stamps, ships (1999) |
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Exports - partners:
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Denmark
33.5%, UK 29.7%, Norway 8.4%, Nigeria 7.2% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$466
million c.i.f. (2002) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery
and transport equipment 29%, consumer goods 36%, raw
materials and semi-manufactures 32%, fuels, fish and
salt (1999) |
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Imports - partners:
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Denmark
52.8%, Norway 18.3%, Iceland 4.4%, Sweden 4.2% (2004)
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Debt - external:
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$64
million (1999) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$135
million (annual subsidy from Denmark) (1998) |
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Currency (code):
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Danish
krone (DKK) |
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Currency code:
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DKK |
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Exchange rates:
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Danish
kroner per US dollar - 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003),
7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001), 8.0831 (2000) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar
year |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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23,000
(2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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30,700
(2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: good international
communications; good domestic facilities
domestic: digitalization was completed in 1998;
both NMT (analog) and GSM (digital) mobile telephone
systems are installed
international: country code - 298; satellite
earth stations - 1 Orion; 1 fiber-optic submarine cable
to the Shetland Islands, linking the Faroe Islands with
Denmark and Iceland; fiber-optic submarine cable
connection to Canada-Europe cable |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 1, FM
13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Radios:
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26,000
(1997) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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3 (plus
43 low-power repeaters) (September 1995) |
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Televisions:
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15,000
(1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.fo |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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2 (2000)
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Internet users:
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25,000
(2002) |
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Highways:
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total:
463 km
paved: 454 km
unpaved: 9 km (1999) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Torshavn
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Merchant marine:
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total:
14 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 24,051 GRT/11,998 DWT
by type: cargo 6, container 1, passenger/cargo 5,
petroleum tanker 2
foreign-owned: 8 (Denmark 2, Germany 1, Iceland
2, Norway 2, United Kingdom 1) (2005) |
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Airports:
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1 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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Military branches:
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no
regular military forces |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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$NA |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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NA |
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Military - note:
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defense
is the responsibility of Denmark |
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Disputes - international:
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because
anticipated offshore hydrocarbon resources have not been
realized, earlier Faroese proposals for full
independence have been deferred; Iceland disputes the
Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary; Iceland,
the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the
Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm
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This page was last updated on
20 October, 2005 |
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