Greenland

parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchyIndependence none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark

Greenland as the 2004 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 106 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalNuuk (Godthab)

Position72 00 N, 40 00 W

Area2,166,086 sq km

LocationNorthern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada

Populationas each edition published it

56,384 people July 2004 est. · 56,078 in 1990

Population growth% a year

-0.01% 2004 est. · 0.84% in 1993

Median ageyears

33.5 years 2004 est. · 33.1 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

69.32 years 2004 est. · 66.19 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.42 children per woman 2004 est. · 2.2 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

16.31 deaths per 1,000 live births 2004 est. · 28 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$20,000 2001 est. · $9,000 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

1.8% 2001 est. · -10% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

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.

Geography

Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada

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Land useshare of 2,166,086 sq km

permanent crops 0%other 100% (2001)arable land 0% in all

Area

2,166,086sq km

land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.)slightly more than three times the size of Texas

Coastline

44,087km

land boundaries: 0 kmterritorial sea: 3 nmcontinental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median lineexclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line

Highest point

3,700m

Gunnbjornlowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Location

Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada

Geographic coordinates

72 00 N, 40 00 W

Map references

Arctic Region

Climate

arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters

Terrain

flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast

Natural resources

coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas

Irrigated land

NA sq km

Natural hazards

continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island

Environment - current issues

protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting

Geography - note

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

People

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Population

56,384

(July 2004 est.)growth rate: -0.01% (2004 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2004 est.)

Birth

15.96Death

7.7Net migration

-8.37

Male · female(2004 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years69.32

65.75 · 72.98Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births16.31

17.62 · 14.96

TotalMale · femaleMedian age years33.5

34.8 · 31.9

MaleFemale

Age structure

0-14 years:: 25.5% (male 7,344; female 7,029)
15-64 years:: 68.5% (male 20,894; female 17,715)
65 years and over:: 6% (male 1,585; female 1,817) (2004 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 1.18 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population:: 1.12 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.42 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

100 (1999)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

Nationality

noun:: Greenlander(s)
adjective:: Greenlandic

Ethnic groups

Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (January 2000)

Religions

Evangelical Lutheran

Languages

Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English

Literacy

definition:: NA
total population:: NA
male:: NA
female:: NA

note: similar to Denmark proper

Government

Parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy; Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Peter LAURITEEN (since NA 2002); Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002)

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Presidential electionpercent of vote

28.7%

Siumut 28.7%Inuit Ataqatigiit 25.5%Atassut Party 20.4%Demokratiit 15.6%Katusseqatigiit 5.3%last held on 3 December 2002 (next to be held by NA December 2006)

Parliament or Landstinget, 31 seats, elected 3 December 2002one dot, one seat

Siumut 10Inuit Ataqatigiit 8Atassut 7Demokratiit 5Katusseqatigiit 1

Percent of vote

Siumut 28.7%Inuit Ataqatigiit 25.5%Atassut Party 20.4%Demokratiit 15.6%Katusseqatigiit 5.3%

Country name

conventional long form:: none
conventional short form:: Greenland
local long form:: none
local short form:: Kalaallit Nunaat

Dependency status

part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979

Government type

parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy

Capital

Nuuk (Godthab)

Administrative divisions

3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland) note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland

Independence

none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland)

National holiday

June 21 (longest day)

Constitution

5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)

Legal system

Danish

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

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

Legislative branch

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 NA 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 20 November 2001 (next to be held 8 February 2005); percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Siumut 1,

Inuit Ataqatigiit 1

Judicial branch

High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen)

Political parties and leaders

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]

Political pressure groups and leaders

International organization participation

NC, NIB, UPU

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)

Diplomatic representation from the US

none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)

Flag description

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

Economy

The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues.

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Real growth rate

1.8%

(2001 est.)industrial production growth: NA

Inflation, consumer prices

1.6%

(1999 est.)

Unemployment rate

10%

(2000 est.)

Labor force

24,500

(1999 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

64.7%

Denmark

82.6%

14.2%

Japan

Norway

7.5%

4.4%

China

Sweden

3.5%

Exports $388 million f.o.b. (2002)Imports $445 million c.i.f. (2002)(2003)

Budget

Revenues

$646 millionExpenditures

$629 million (1999)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $85 million

Electricity

Electricity production

245 million (2001)Electricity consumption

227.9 million (2001)

Economy - overview

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.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $20,000 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture:: NA
industry:: NA
services:: NA

Population below poverty line

Agriculture - products

forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables;
sheep, reindeer;
fish

Industries

fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut), handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards, mining

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption

3,700 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA (2001)

Oil - imports

NA (2001)

Exports

$388 million f.o.b. (2002)

Exports - commodities

fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%)

Imports

$445 million c.i.f. (2002)

Imports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products

Debt - external

$25 million (1999)

Economic aid - recipient

$380 million subsidy from Denmark (1997)

Currency

Danish krone (DKK) is the official legal tender.

Currency code

DKK

Exchange rates

Danish kroner per US dollar - 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.323 (2001), 8.083 (2000), 6.976 (1999)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Mobile cellular

16,747

(2001)

Internet users

2,642

(2004)

Fixed lines

26,000

(2001) · country code .gl

Telephone system

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)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998)

Television broadcast stations

1 publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations, and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997)

Internet users

20,000 (2002)

Transportation

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Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right

over 3,047 m

2,438 to 3,047 m

1,524 to 2,437 m

914 to 1,523 m

under 914 m

Paved 9Unpaved 5

Highways

total: NA (there are no roads between towns) (2003)

Ports and harbors

Aasiaat (Egedesminde), Ilulissat (Jakobshavn), Kangerlussuaq, Nanortalik, Narsarsuaq, Nuuk (Godthab), Qaqortoq (Julianehab), Sisimiut (Holsteinsborg), Tasiilaq