Faroe Islands




                                  Header


Affiliation:
     (part of the Danish realm)


                                 Geography


Location:
     Nordic States, Northern Europe in the north Atlantic Ocean, located
     half way between Norway and Iceland
Map references:
     Arctic Region
Area:
total area:
     1,400 sq km
land area:
     1,400 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly less than eight times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
     0 km
Coastline:
     764 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone:
     200 nm
territorial sea:
     3 nm
International disputes:
     none
Climate:
     mild winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy, windy
Terrain:
     rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast
Natural resources:
     fish
Land use:
arable land:
     2%
permanent crops:
     0%
meadows and pastures:
     0%
forest and woodland:
     0%
other:
     98%
Irrigated land:
     NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
     NA
natural hazards:
     NA




international agreements:
     NA
Note:
     archipelago of 18 inhabited islands and a few uninhabited islets;
     strategically located along important sea lanes in northeastern
     Atlantic; precipitous terrain limits habitation to small coastal
     lowlands


                                  People


Population:
     48,427 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     0.83% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
     17.97 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     7.56 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     -2.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     8.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     78.1 years
male:
     74.71 years
female:
     81.62 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     2.47 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Faroese (singular and plural)
adjective:
     Faroese
Ethnic divisions:
     Scandinavian
Religions:
     Evangelical Lutheran
Languages:
     Faroese (derived from Old Norse), Danish
Literacy:
total population:
     NA%
male:
     NA%
female:
     NA%
Labor force:
     17,585
by occupation:
     largely engaged in fishing, manufacturing, transportation, and
     commerce




                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     none
conventional short form:
local long form:
     none
local short form:
     Foroyar
Digraph:
     FO
Type:
     part of the Danish realm; self-governing overseas administrative
     division of Denmark
Capital:
     Torshavn
Administrative divisions:
     none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
Independence:
     none (part of the Danish realm; self-governing overseas administrative
     division of Denmark)
National holiday:
     Birthday of the Queen, 16 April (1940)
Constitution:
     5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)
Legal system:
     Danish
Suffrage:
     20 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
     Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972), represented by High
     Commissioner Bent KLINTE (since NA)
head of government:
     Prime Minister Marita PETERSEN (since 18 January 1993)
cabinet:
     Landsstyri; elected by the local legislature
Legislative branch:
     unicameral
Faroese Parliament (Lgting):
     elections last held 17 November 1990 (next to be held November 1994);
     results - Social Democratic 27.4%, People's Party 21.9%, Cooperation
     Coalition Party 18.9%, Republican Party 14.7%, Home Rule 8.8%,
     PFIP-CPP 5.9%, other 2.4%; seats - (32 total) two-party coalition 17
     (Social Democratic 10, People's Party 7), Cooperation Coalition Party
     6, Republican Party 4, Home Rule 3, PFIP-CPP 2
Danish Parliament:
     elections last held on 12 December 1990 (next to be held by December
     1994); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (2 total) Social
     Democratic 1, People's Party 1; note - the Faroe Islands elects two
     representatives to the Danish Parliament
Judicial branch:
     none




Political parties and leaders:
three-party ruling coalition:
     Social Democratic Party, Marita PETERSEN; Republican Party, Signer
     HANSEN; Home Rule Party, Hilmar KASS
opposition:
     Cooperation Coalition Party, Pauli ELLEFSEN; Progressive and Fishing
     Industry Party-Christian People's Party (PFIP-CPP), leader NA;
     Progress Party, leader NA; People's Party, Jogvan SUND-STEIN
Member of:
     none
Diplomatic representation in US:
     none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
US diplomatic representation:
     none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
Flag:
     white with a red cross outlined in blue 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)


                                  Economy


Overview:
     The Faroese, who have long enjoyed the affluent living standards of
     the Danes and other Scandinavians, now must cope with the decline of
     the all-important fishing industry and one of the world's heaviest per
     capita external debts of nearly $30,000. When the nations of the world
     extended their fishing zones to 200 nautical miles in the early 1970s,
     the Faroese no longer could continue their traditional long-distance
     fishing and subsequently depleted their own nearby fishing areas. The
     government's tight controls on fish stocks and its austerity measures
     have caused a recession, and subsidy cuts will force nationalization
     in the fishing industry, which has already been plagued with
     bankruptcies. Copenhagen has threatened to withhold its annual subsidy
     of $130 million - roughly one-third of the islands' budget revenues -
     unless the Faroese make significant efforts to balance their budget.
     To this extent the Faroe government is expected to continue its tough
     policies, including introducing a 20% value-added tax (VAT) in 1993,
     and has agreed to an IMF economic-political stabilization plan. In
     addition to its annual subsidy, the Danish government has bailed out
     the second largest Faroe bank to the tune of $140 million since
     October 1992.
National product:
     GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $662 million (1989 est.)
National product real growth rate:
     3% (1989 est.)
National product per capita:
     $14,000 (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     2% (1988)
Unemployment rate:
     2.5% (1993 est)
Budget:
revenues:
     $425 million




expenditures:
     $480 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1991 est.)
Exports:
     $386 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
commodities:
     fish and fish products 88%, animal feedstuffs, transport equipment
     (ships) (1989)
partners:
     Denmark 20%, Germany 18.3%, UK 14.2%, France 11.2%, Spain 7.9%, US
     4.5%
Imports:
     $322 million (c.i.f., 1990 est.)
commodities:
     machinery and transport equipment 24.4%, manufactures 24%, food and
     livestock 19%, fuels 12%, chemicals 6.5%
partners:
     Denmark 43.8%, Norway 19.8%, Sweden 4.9%, Germany 4.2%, US 1.3%
External debt:
     $1.3 billion (1991)
Industrial production:
     growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
     80,000 kW
production:
     280 million kWh
consumption per capita:
     5,760 kWh (1992)
Industries:
     fishing, shipbuilding, handicrafts
Agriculture:
     accounts for 27% of GDP and employs 27% of labor force; principal
     crops - potatoes and vegetables; livestock - sheep; annual fish catch
     about 360,000 metric tons
Economic aid:
recipient:
     receives an annual subsidy from Denmark of about $130 million
Currency:
     1 Danish krone (DKr) = 100 oere
Exchange rates:
     Danish kroner (DKr) per US$1 - 6.771 (January 1994), 6.484 (1993),
     6.036 (1992), 6.396 (1991), 6.189 (1990), 7.310 (1989)
Fiscal year:
     1 April - 31 March


                              Communications


Highways:
total:
     200 km
paved:
     NA
unpaved:
     NA




Ports:
     Torshavn, Tvoroyri
Merchant marine:
     7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 19,943 GRT/18,399 DWT, cargo 5,
     roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, short-sea passenger 1
note:
     a subset of the Danish register
Airports:
total:
     1
usable:
     1
with permanent-surface runways:
     1
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     1
Telecommunications:
     good international communications; fair domestic facilities; 27,900
     telephones; broadcast stations - 1 AM, 3 (10 repeaters) FM, 3 (29
     repeaters) TV; 3 coaxial submarine cables


                              Defense Forces


Branches:
     small Police Force, no organized native military forces
Note:
     defense is the responsibility of Denmark