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  Introduction
  Geography
  People
  Government
  Economy
  Communications
  Transportation
  Military
  Transnational Issues

In general, information available as of 1 January 2003
was used in the preparation of The World Factbook 2003.


This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003


Map of Denmark

Legend: DefinitionDefinition Field ListingField Listing Rank OrderRank Order
   Introduction    Denmark
Background:
Definition Field Listing
Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation that is participating in the general political and economic integration of Europe. It joined NATO in 1949 and the EEC (now the EU) in 1973. However, the country has opted out of certain elements of the European Union's Maastricht Treaty, including the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and issues concerning certain justice and home affairs.
   Geography    Denmark
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes two major islands (Sjaelland and Fyn)
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
56 00 N, 10 00 E
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
Europe
Area:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 43,094 sq km
water: 700 sq km
note: includes the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the rest of metropolitan Denmark (the Jutland Peninsula, and the major islands of Sjaelland and Fyn), but excludes the Faroe Islands and Greenland
land: 42,394 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
7,314 km
Maritime claims:
Definition Field Listing
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
low and flat to gently rolling plains
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, stone, gravel and sand
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 55.74%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 44.07% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
4,760 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
air pollution, principally from vehicle and power plant emissions; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and pesticides
Environment - international agreements:
Definition Field Listing
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 Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen
   People    Denmark
Population:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
5,384,384 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 18.7% (male 516,872; female 490,543)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,809,138; female 1,762,577)
65 years and over: 15% (male 338,141; female 467,113) (2003 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 39.1 years
male: 38.1 years
female: 40.1 years (2002)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
0.28% (2003 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
11.52 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
10.72 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
2.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 4.9 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 5.16 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 77.1 years
male: 74.48 years
female: 79.87 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.73 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0.2% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3,800 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
less than 100 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2%
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: NA%
female: NA%
   Government    Denmark
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark
local short form: Danmark
local long form: Kongeriget Danmark
Government type:
Definition Field Listing
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
Definition Field Listing
Copenhagen
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskomunes); Arhus, Bornholm, Fredericksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing overseas administrative divisions
Independence:
Definition Field Listing
first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy
National holiday:
Definition Field Listing
none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day
Constitution:
Definition Field Listing
1849 was the original constitution; there was a major overhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state
Legal system:
Definition Field Listing
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
Definition Field Listing
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26 May 1968)
head of government: Prime Minister Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN (since 27 November 2001)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch
Legislative branch:
Definition Field Listing
unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party 56, Social Democrats 52, Danish People's Party 22, Conservative Party 16, Socialist People's Party 12, Social Liberal Party 9, Christian People's Party 4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands
Judicial branch:
Definition Field Listing
Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian People's Party [Marianne KARLSMOSE]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Social Democratic Party [Mogens LYKKETOFT]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Johannes LEBECH, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
NA
International organization participation:
Definition Field Listing
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Ulrik Andreas FEDERSPIEL
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470
telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300
chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart A. BERNSTEIN
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen
mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716
telephone: [45] 35 55 31 44
FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23
Flag description:
Definition Field Listing
red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side, and that design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) was subsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden
   Economy    Denmark
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
This thoroughly modern market economy features high-tech agriculture, up-to-date small-scale and corporate industry, extensive government welfare measures, comfortable living standards, a stable currency, and high dependence on foreign trade. Denmark is a net exporter of food and energy and enjoys a comfortable balance of payments surplus. Government objectives include streamlining the bureaucracy and further privatization of state assets. The government has been successful in meeting, and even exceeding, the economic convergence criteria for participating in the third phase (a common European currency) of the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), but Denmark has decided not to join the 12 other EU members in the euro; even so, the Danish Krone remains pegged to the euro. Given the sluggish state of the European economy, growth in 2003 was a mere 1.1%.
GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $155.3 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.6% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $28,900 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 3%
industry: 26%
services: 71% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
24.7 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.3% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.856 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
services 79%, industry 17%, agriculture 4% (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
5.1% (2002)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $52.9 billion
expenditures: $51.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2001 est.)
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products, shipbuilding, windmills
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.4% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
35.47 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
Definition Field Listing
fossil fuel: 82.7%
hydro: 0.1%
other: 17.3% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
32.41 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
8.775 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
8.199 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
346,200 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
218,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
332,100 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
195,000 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.23 billion bbl (37257)
Natural gas - production:
Definition Field Listing
8.38 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
Definition Field Listing
5.28 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
Definition Field Listing
3.1 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
Definition Field Listing
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
81.98 billion cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$56.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Germany 17.1%, Sweden 11.6%, UK 7.8%, US 6.8%, France 5.8%, Norway 5.7%, Japan 4.4% (2002)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$47.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Germany 22.9%, Sweden 10.7%, UK 8.7%, Netherlands 7.8%, France 6%, Norway 4.9%, Italy 4.4% (2002)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$21.7 billion (2000)
Economic aid - donor:
Definition Field Listing
ODA, $1.63 billion (1999)
Currency:
Definition Field Listing
Danish krone (DKK)
Currency code:
Definition Field Listing
DKK
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
Danish kroner per US dollar - 7.89 (2002), 8.32 (2001), 8.08 (2000), 6.98 (1999), 6.7 (1998)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Denmark
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.785 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1,444,016 (1997)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: excellent telephone and telegraph services
domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems
international: 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Norway, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Canada; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat (Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997)
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998)
Internet country code:
Definition Field Listing
.dk
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
Definition Field Listing
13 (2000)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.37 million (2002)
   Transportation    Denmark
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 3,164 km
standard gauge: 2,324 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified)
note:: total includes 840 km of suburban track (2002)
Highways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (2000)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing
417 km
Pipelines:
Definition Field Listing
condensate 12 km; gas 3,892 km; oil 455 km; oil/gas/water 2 km; unknown (oil/water) 64 km (2003)
Ports and harbors:
Definition Field Listing
Abenra, Alborg, Arhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle
Merchant marine:
Definition Field Listing
total: 282 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,714,557 GRT/8,715,716 DWT
note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1, Greenland 1, Indonesia 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 9, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.)
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 85, chemical tanker 29, container 77, liquefied gas 19, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 28, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 11, short-sea passenger 6, specialized tanker 4
Airports:
Definition Field Listing
104 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 12
under 914 m: 3 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 76
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 71 (2002)
   Military    Denmark
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home Guard
Military manpower - military age:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 1,282,315 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 1,094,611 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males: 28,198 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$2.47 billion (FY99/00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.4% (FY99/00)
   Transnational Issues    Denmark
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area); dispute with Iceland over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 NM; disputes with Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM; Faroese are considering proposals for full independence; uncontested dispute with Canada over Hans Island sovereignty in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland

This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003


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