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Background:
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The
world's largest island, Greenland is about 81%
ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th
century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the
18th century and Greenland was made an integral part of
Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now
the European Union) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in
1985 over a dispute over stringent fishing quotas.
Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the
Danish parliament. The law went into effect the
following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of
Greenland's foreign affairs. |
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Location:
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Northern
North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the
North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
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Geographic coordinates:
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72 00 N,
40 00 W |
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Map references:
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Arctic
Region |
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Area:
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total:
2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free,
1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
more than three times the size of Texas |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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44,087 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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arctic to
subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
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Terrain:
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flat to
gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow,
mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m |
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Natural resources:
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coal,
iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum,
uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil
and gas |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA sq km
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Natural hazards:
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continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the
island |
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Environment - current issues:
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protection of the arctic environment; preservation of
the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and
seal hunting |
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Geography - note:
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dominates
North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe;
sparse population confined to small settlements along
coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives
in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap
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Population:
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56,375
(July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 25% (male 7,216/female 6,888)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 20,897/female 17,823)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 1,672/female 1,879)
(2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
33.83 years
male: 35.15 years
female: 32.14 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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-0.02%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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15.93
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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7.77
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-8.37
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
15.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.15 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 14.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005
est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 69.65 years
male: 66.07 years
female: 73.31 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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2.41
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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100
(1999) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
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Ethnic groups:
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Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites),
Danish and others 12% (January 2000) |
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Religions:
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Evangelical Lutheran |
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Languages:
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Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
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Literacy:
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definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA%
note: similar to Denmark proper |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland
local long form: none
local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
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Dependency status:
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part of
the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas
administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy
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Capital:
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Nuuk
(Godthab) |
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Administrative divisions:
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3
districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu
(Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland
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Independence:
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none
(part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the
responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively
participates in international agreements relating to
Greenland) |
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National holiday:
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June 21
(longest day) |
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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 Peter
LAURITEEN (since NA 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN
(since 14 December 2002)
cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the
parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of
parties
elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high
commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is
elected by parliament (usually the leader of the
majority party); election last held 3 December 2002
(next to be held December 2006)
election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime
minister
note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit
Ataqatigiit |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members
are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional
representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 3 December 2002 (next to
be held by December 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party -
Siumut 28.7%, Inuit Ataqatigiit 25.5%, Atassut Party
20.4%, Demokratiit 15.6%, Katusseqatigiit 5.3%; seats by
party - Siumut 10, Inuit Ataqatigiit 8, Atassut 7,
Demokratiit 5, Katusseqatigiit 1
note: two representatives were elected to the
Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next
to be held February 2009); percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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High
Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre
Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or
Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Atassut
Party (Solidarity, a conservative party favoring
continuing close relations with Denmark) [Augusta
SALLING]; Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit
Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood, a leftist party
favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than
home rule) [Josef MOTZFELDT]; Issituup (Polar Party)
[Nicolai HEINRICH]; Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List, an
independent right-of-center party with no official
platform [leader NA]; Siumut (Forward Party, a social
democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic
identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) [Hans
ENOKSEN] |
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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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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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two equal
horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large
disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half
of the disk is red, the bottom half is white |
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Economy - overview:
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The
economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish
and substantial support from the Danish Government,
which supplies about half of government revenues. The
public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and
the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the
economy. Despite several interesting hydrocarbon and
minerals exploration activities, it will take several
years before production can materialize. Tourism is the
only sector offering any near-term potential, and even
this is limited due to a short season and high costs.
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$1.1
billion (2001 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1.8%
(2001 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $20,000 (2001 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
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Labor force:
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24,500
(1999 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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10% (2000
est.) |
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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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1.6%
(1999 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $646 million
expenditures: $629 million, including capital
expenditures of $85 million (1999) |
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Agriculture - products:
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forage
crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep,
reindeer; fish |
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Industries:
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fish
processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold,
niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining;
handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA% |
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Electricity - production:
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245
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0%
note: Greenland is shifting its electricity
production from fossil fuel to hydropower production
(2001) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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227.9
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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3,700
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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$388
million f.o.b. (2002) |
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Exports - commodities:
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fish and
fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
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Exports - partners:
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Denmark
63.8%, Japan 12.6%, China 3.9% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$445
million c.i.f. (2002) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery
and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food,
petroleum products |
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Imports - partners:
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Denmark
78.7%, Sweden 11.9%, Norway 2.7% (2004) |
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Debt - external:
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$25
million (1999) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$380
million subsidy from Denmark (1997) |
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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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26,000
(2001) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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16,747
(2001) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: adequate domestic and
international service provided by satellite, cables and
microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite
international: country code - 299; satellite
earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom
GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 5, FM
12, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Radios:
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30,000
(1998 est.) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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1
publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations,
and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997) |
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Televisions:
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30,000
(1998 est.) |
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Internet country code:
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.gl |
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Internet hosts:
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2,642
(2004) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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1 (2000)
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Internet users:
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20,000
(2002) |
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Highways:
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total:
NA (there are no roads between towns) (2003) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Sisimiut
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Merchant marine:
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total:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,593 GRT/3,640 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 2
foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1)
registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
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Airports:
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14 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
9
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
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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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uncontested dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans
Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere
Island and Greenland |
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This page was last updated on
20 October, 2005 |
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