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)
National holiday: Constitution Day, 17 May (1814)
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
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: King HARALD V (since 17 January 1991); Heir Apparent
Crown Prince HAAKON MAGNUS (born 20 July 1973)
head of government: Prime Minister Kjell Magne BONDEVIK (since 15
October 1997)
cabinet: State Council appointed by the king with the approval of the
Parliament
elections: none; the king is a hereditary monarch; following
parliamentary elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of
a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the king
with the approval of the Parliament
Legislative branch: modified unicameral Parliament or Storting which,
for certain purposes, divides itself into two chambers (165 seats;
members are elected by popular vote by proportional representation to
serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 September 1997 (next to be held NA September
2001)
election results: percent of vote by party-Labor 35%, Center Party
7.9%, Conservatives 14.3%, Christian People's 13.7%, Socialist Left
6%, Progress 15.3%, Liberal Party 4.4%, other parties 1.6%; seats by
party-Labor 65, Center Party 11, Conservatives 23, Christian People's
25, Socialist Left 9, Progress 25, Liberal Party 6, other parties 1
note: for certain purposes, the Parliament divides itself into two
chambers and elects one-fourth of its membership to an upper house or
Lagting; the 39-member Saami assembly has advisory functions on
regional control of natural resources and decision-making capacity on
matters relating to the preservation of the Saami culture
Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Hoyesterett, justices appointed by
the king
Political parties and leaders: Labor Party [Thorbjorn JAGLAND];
Conservative Party [Jan PETERSEN]; Center Party [Anne ENGER
LAHNSTEIN]; Christian People's Party [Valgerd HAUGLAND]; Socialist
Left [Kjellbjoerg LUNDE]; Norwegian Communist [Kare Andre NILSEN];
Progress Party [Carl I. HAGEN]; Liberal [Odd Einar DORUM]; Left Party;
Red Electoral Alliance [Erling FOLKVORD]
International organization participation: AfDB,AsDB, Australia Group,
BIS, CBSS, CCC,CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, IADB, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUA, MTCR,
NAM (guest), NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCRO,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNPREDEP, UNTSO,
UPU, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Tom-Erik VRAALSON
chancery: 2720 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 333-6000
FAX: [1] (202) 337-0870
consulate(s) general: Houston, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, and San
Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador David HERMELIN
embassy: Drammensveien 18, 0244 Oslo
mailing address: PSC 69, Box 1000, APO AE 09707
telephone: [47] 22 44 85 50
FAX: [47] 22 44 33 63
Flag description: 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)
@Norway:Economy
Economy-overview: Norway is a prosperous bastion of welfare
capitalism. The economy consists of 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 maintains an extensive welfare
system that helps propel public sector expenditures to more than 50%
of GDP and results in one of the highest average tax levels in the
world. 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. Only Saudi Arabia
exports more oil than Norway. Norway imports more than half its food
needs. Oslo opted to stay out of the EU during a referendum in
November 1994. Economic growth in 1998 should be about the same as in
1997. Inflation probably will move up toward 3% because of tightness
in labor markets. Despite their high per capita income-outstripped
among major nations only by the US-and their generous welfare
benefits, Norwegians worry about that time in the 21st century when
the oil and gas run out.
GDP: purchasing power parity-$120.5 billion (1997 est.)
GDP-real growth rate: 3.5% (1997 est.)
GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$27,400 (1997 est.)
GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.9%
industry: 34.7%
services: 62.4% (1991)
Inflation rate-consumer price index: 2% (1997 est.)
Labor force:
total: 2.13 million
by occupation: services 71%, industry 23%, agriculture, forestry, and
fishing 6% (1993)
Unemployment rate: 2.6% (yearend 1997)
Budget:
revenues: $48.6 billion
expenditures: $53 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1994
est.)
Industries: petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and
paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing
Industrial production growth rate: 3% (1996 est.)
Electricity-capacity: 26.431 million kW (1995)
Electricity-production: 121.375 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity-consumption per capita: 26,547 kWh (1995)
Agriculture-products: oats, other grains; beef, milk; livestock output
exceeds value of crops; among world's top 10 fishing nations; fish
catch of 2.33 million metric tons in 1994
Exports:
total value: $49.3 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
commodities: petroleum and petroleum products 43%, metals and products
11%, foodstuffs (mostly fish) 9%, chemicals and raw materials 25%,
natural gas 6.0%, ships 5.4%
partners: EU 77.2% (UK 19.8%, Germany 12.7%, Netherlands 9.1%, France
7.8%, Sweden 9.8%), US 6.0% (1995)
Imports:
total value: $35.1 billion (c.i.f., 1996)
commodities: machinery and equipment and manufactured consumer goods
54%, chemicals and other industrial inputs 39%, foodstuffs 6%
partners: EU 71.0% (Sweden 15.4%, Germany 13.8%, UK 9.7%, Denmark
7.5%, Netherlands 4.4%), US 6.6% (1995)
Debt-external: $NA
Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $1.014 billion (1993)
Currency: 1 Norwegian krone (NKr) = 100 oere
Exchange rates: Norwegian kroner (NKr) per US$1-7.4875 (January 1998),
7.0734 (1997), 6.4498 (1996), 6.3352 (1995), 7.0576 (1994), 7.0941
(1993)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 2.39 million (1994 est.); 470,000 mobile phones in use in
1994
Telephone system: high-quality domestic and international telephone,
telegraph, and telex services
domestic: NA domestic satellite earth stations
international: 2 buried coaxial cable systems; 4 coaxial submarine
cables; satellite earth stations-NA Eutelsat, NA Intelsat (Atlantic
Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions);
note-Norway shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic
countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 46, FM 493 (350 private and 143
government), shortwave 0
Radios: 3.3 million (1993 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 54 (repeaters 2,100)
Televisions: 1.5 million (1993 est.)
@Norway:Transportation
Railways:
total: 4,023 km
standard gauge: 4,023 km 1.435-m gauge (2,422 km electrified; 96 km
double track) (1996)
Highways:
total: 91,323 km
paved: 65,753 km (including 106 km of expressways)
unpaved: 25,570 km (1996 est.)
Waterways: 1,577 km along west coast; 2.4 m draft vessels maximum
Pipelines: refined products 53 km
Ports and harbors: Bergen, Drammen, Floro, Hammerfest, Harstad,
Haugesund, Kristiansand, Larvik, Narvik, Oslo, Porsgrunn, Stavanger,
Tromso, Trondheim
Merchant marine:
total: 762 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 21,042,709
GRT/33,839,476 DWT
ships by type: bulk 102, cargo 128, chemical tanker 91, combination
bulk 9, combination ore/oil 38, container 18, liquefied gas tanker 91,
multi-function large load carrier 1, oil tanker 145, passenger 13,
passenger-cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 13, roll-on/roll-off cargo 52,
short-sea passenger 23, vehicle carrier 37
note: the government has created an internal 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 (1997 est.)
Airports: 102 (1997 est.)
Airports-with paved runways:
total: 65
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 11
under 914 m: 28 (1997 est.)
Airports-with unpaved runways:
total: 37
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 32 (1997 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1997 est.)
@Norway:Military
Military branches: Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy (includes
Coast Artillery and Coast Guard), Royal Norwegian Air Force, Home
Guard
Military manpower-military age: 20 years of age
Military manpower-availability:
males age 15-49: 1,107,727 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-fit for military service:
males: 921,368 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-reaching military age annually:
males: 27,406 (1998 est.)
Military expenditures-dollar figure: $3.7 billion (1995)
Military expenditures-percent of GDP: 2.9% (1995)
@Norway:Transnational Issues
Disputes-international: territorial claim in Antarctica (Queen Maud
Land); Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute in the
Barents Sea between Norway and Russia
Illicit drugs: minor transshipment point for drugs shipped via the CIS
and Baltic states for the European market; increasing domestic
consumption of cannabis and amphetamines
______________________________________________________________________
OMAN
@Oman:Geography
Location: Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and
Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE
Geographic coordinates: 21 00 N, 57 00 E
Map references: Middle East
Area:
total: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area-comparative: slightly smaller than Kansas
Land boundaries:
total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km
Coastline: 2,092 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong
southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south
Terrain: vast central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and
south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal ash Sham 2,980 m
Natural resources: petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble,
limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 5%
forests and woodland: NA%
other: 95% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 580 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust
storms in interior; periodic droughts
Environment-current issues: rising soil salinity; beach pollution from
oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources
Environment-international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography-note: strategic location with small foothold on Musandam
Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for
world crude oil
@Oman:People
Population: 2,363,591 (July 1998 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 41% (male 488,244; female 469,831)
15-64 years: 57% (male 835,872; female 514,236)
65 years and over: 2% (male 28,966; female 26,442) (July 1998 est.)
Population growth rate: 3.45% (1998 est.)
Birth rate: 37.83 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate: 4.37 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.63 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female (1998 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 25.55 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.02 years
male: 69.04 years
female: 73.1 years (1998 est.)
Total fertility rate: 6.13 children born/woman (1998 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Omani(s)
adjective: Omani
Ethnic groups: Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri
Lankan, Bangladeshi), African
Religions: Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu
Languages: Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects
Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: approaching 80%
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Oman:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman
conventional short form: Oman
local long form: Saltanat Uman
local short form: Uman
Data code: MU
Government type: monarchy
National capital: Muscat
Administrative divisions: 6 regions (mintaqah, singular-mintaqat) and
2 governorates* (muhafazah, singular-muhafazat) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al
Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam*,
Zufar*
Independence: 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese)
National holiday: National Day, 18 November (1940)
Constitution: none; note-on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a
royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things,
clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars
ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the
government, establishes a bicameral Omani council, and guarantees
basic civil liberties for Omani citizens
Legal system: based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate
appeal to the sultan; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: limited to approximately 50,000 Omanis chosen by the
government to vote in elections for the Majlis ash-Shura
Executive branch:
chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said
(since 23 July 1970); note-the sultan is both the chief of state and
head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said
(since 23 July 1970); note-the sultan is both the chief of state and
head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the sultan
elections: none; the sultan is a hereditary monarch
Legislative branch: bicameral Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber
or Majlis ad-Dawla (41 seats; members appointed by the Sultan; has
advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis ash-Shura (82
seats; members elected by limited suffrage, however, the Sultan makes
final selections and can negate election results; body has some
limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory
powers)
elections: last held NA October 1997 (next to be held NA 2000)
election results: NA
Judicial branch: none; traditional Islamic judges and a nascent civil
court system, administered by region
Political parties and leaders: none
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF,
ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM,
OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
(applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Abdallah bin Muhammad bin Aqil al-DHAHAB
chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1982, 1988
FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Frances D. COOK
embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat
mailing address: domestic: Unit 73000, Box 1, APO AE 09890-3000;
international: P. O. Box 202, Code No. 115, Medinat Qaboos, Muscat
telephone: [968] 698989 (Medinat Qaboos, switchboard)
FAX: [968] 699779
Flag description: three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of
equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the
national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two
crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered at the top of the
vertical band
@Oman:Economy
Economy-overview: Economic performance is closely tied to the fortunes
of the oil industry. Petroleum accounts for 75% of export earnings and
government revenues and for roughly 40% of GDP. Oman has proved oil
reserves of 4 billion barrels, equivalent to about 20 years'
production at the current rate of extraction. Agriculture is carried
on at a subsistence level and the general population depends on
imported food. The year 1996 was marked by higher oil production and
prices. The government is encouraging private investment, both
domestic and foreign, as a prime force for further economic
development.
GDP: purchasing power parity-$17.2 billion (1997 est.)
GDP-real growth rate: 3.5% (1997 est.)
GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$8,000 (1997 est.)
GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: 3%
industry: 43%
services: 54% (1995)
Inflation rate-consumer price index: 1% (1996 est.)
Labor force:
total: 780,500 (1997 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 37% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $5.2 billion
expenditures: $6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.3
billion (1998 est.)
Industries: crude oil production and refining, natural gas production,
construction, cement, copper
Industrial production growth rate: 3% (1994 est.)
Electricity-capacity: 1.744 million kW (1995)
Electricity-production: 7.8 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity-consumption per capita: 3,670 kWh (1995)
Agriculture-products: dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables;
camels, cattle; annual fish catch averages 100,000 metric tons
Exports:
total value: $7.6 billion (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: petroleum 75%, reexports, fish, processed copper,
textiles
partners: Japan 29%, South Korea 17%, China 12%, Thailand 11%, US 7%
(1996)
Imports:
total value: $4.8 billion (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods,
food, livestock, lubricants
partners: UAE 22% (largely reexports), Japan 15%, UK 15%, France 6%,
US 5% (1996)
Debt-external: $3 billion (1997 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $82 million (1993)
Currency: 1 Omani rial (RO) = 1,000 baiza
Exchange rates: Omani rials (RO) per US$1-0.3845 (fixed rate since
1986)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 150,000 (1994 est.)
Telephone system: modern system consisting of open wire, microwave,
and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
domestic: open wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a
domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations
international: satellite earth stations-2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and
1 Arabsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 1
Radios: 1.043 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 9
Televisions: 1.195 million (1992 est.)
@Oman:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 32,800 km
paved: 9,840 km (including 550 km of expressways)
unpaved: 22,960 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 1,300 km; natural gas 1,030 km
Ports and harbors: Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut
Merchant marine:
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,306 GRT/8,210 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1, passenger 1, passenger-cargo 1 (1996 est.)
Airports: 138 (1997 est.)
Airports-with paved runways:
total: 6
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1997 est.)
Airports-with unpaved runways:
total: 132
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 57
914 to 1,523 m: 32
under 914 m: 35 (1997 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1997 est.)
@Oman:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary (includes Royal
Oman Police)
Military manpower-availability:
males age 15-49: 740,901 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-fit for military service:
males: 414,528 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-reaching military age annually:
males: NA
Military expenditures-dollar figure: $1.82 billion (1996)
Military expenditures-percent of GDP: 13.7% (1996)
@Oman:Transnational Issues
Disputes-international: no defined boundary with most of UAE, but
Administrative Line in far north
______________________________________________________________________
PACIFIC OCEAN
@Pacific Ocean:Geography
Location: body of water between Antarctica, Asia, Australia, and the
Western Hemisphere
Geographic coordinates: 0 00 N, 160 00 W
Map references: World
Area:
total: 165.384 million sq km
note: includes Bali Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, Bering Sea, Bering
Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Flores Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of
Tonkin, Java Sea, Philippine Sea, Ross Sea, Savu Sea, Sea of Japan,
Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, Timor Sea, and other
tributary water bodies
Area-comparative: about 18 times the size of the US; the largest ocean
(followed by the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Arctic
Ocean); covers about one-third of the global surface; larger than the
total land area of the world
Coastline: 135,663 km
Climate: planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns
exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and
westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal
fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico
from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America;
continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less
pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in
the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal-a rainy
season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow
from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter
months, when dry winds blow from the Asian land mass back to the
ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and East Asia
from May to December
Terrain: surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a
clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in
the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the
northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk
in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches
its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern
Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western
Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench,
which is the world's deepest
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mariana Trench -10,924 m
highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources: oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and
gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish