NORWAY                                                                          
GEOGRAPHY                                                                       
Total area: 324,220 km2; land area: 307,860 km2                                 
                                                                                
Comparative area: slightly larger than New Mexico                               
                                                                                
Land boundaries: 2,544 km total; Finland 729 km, Sweden 1,619 km,               
USSR 196 km                                                                     
Coastline: 21,925 km (3,419 km mainland; 2,413 km large islands;                
16,093 km long fjords, numerous small islands, and minor indentations)          
                                                                                
Maritime claims:                                                                
                                                                                
Contiguous zone: 10 nm;                                                         
                                                                                
Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation;                                    
                                                                                
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;                                                
                                                                                
Territorial sea: 4 nm                                                           
                                                                                
Disputes: maritime boundary dispute with USSR; territorial claim in             
Antarctica (Queen Maud Land); Denmark has challenged Norway's maritime          
claims beween Greenland and Jan Mayen                                           
                                                                                
Climate: temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current;             
colder interior; rainy year-round on west coast                                 
                                                                                
Terrain: glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains                   
broken by fertile valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply            
indented by fjords; arctic tundra in north                                      
                                                                                
Natural resources: crude oil, copper, natural gas, pyrites,                     
nickel, iron ore, zinc, lead, fish, timber, hydropower                          
                                                                                
Land use: arable land 3%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures              
NEGL%; forest and woodland 27%; other 70%; includes irrigated NEGL%             
                                                                                
Environment: air and water pollution; acid rain                                 
                                                                                
Note: strategic location adjacent to sea lanes and air routes in                
North Atlantic; one of most rugged and longest coastlines in world;             
Norway and Turkey only NATO members having a land boundary with the USSR        
                                                                                
PEOPLE                                                                          
Population: 4,273,442 (July 1991), growth rate 0.5% (1991)                      
                                                                                
Birth rate: 14 births/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Death rate: 11 deaths/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Net migration rate: 2 migrants/1,000 population (1991)                          
                                                                                
Infant mortality rate: 7 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)                        
                                                                                
Life expectancy at birth: 74 years male, 81 years female (1991)                 
                                                                                
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (1991)                            
                                                                                
Nationality: noun--Norwegian(s); adjective--Norwegian                           
                                                                                
Ethnic divisions: Germanic (Nordic, Alpine, Baltic) and                         
racial-cultural minority of 20,000 Lapps                                        
                                                                                
Religion: Evangelical Lutheran (state church) 87.8%, other                      
Protestant and Roman Catholic 3.8%, none 3.2%, unknown 5.2% (1980)              
                                                                                
Language: Norwegian (official); small Lapp- and Finnish-speaking                
minorities                                                                      
                                                                                
Literacy: 99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can                        
read and write (1976 est.)                                                      
                                                                                
Labor force: 2,167,000 (September 1990); services 34.7%, commerce               
18%, mining and manufacturing 16.6%, banking and financial services 7.5%,       
transportation and communications 7.2%, construction 7.2%,                      
agriculture, forestry, and fishing 6.4% (1989)                                  
                                                                                
Organized labor: 66% of labor force (1985)                                      
                                                                                
GOVERNMENT                                                                      
Long-form name: Kingdom of Norway                                               
                                                                                
Type: constitutional monarchy                                                   
                                                                                
Capital: Oslo                                                                   
                                                                                
Administrative divisions: 19 provinces (fylker, singular--fylke);               
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                                                            
                                                                                
Independence: 26 October 1905 (from Sweden)                                     
                                                                                
Constitution: 17 May 1814, modified in 1884                                     
                                                                                
Dependent areas: Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard                             
                                                                                
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                                                                    
                                                                                
National holiday: Constitution Day, 17 May (1814)                               
                                                                                
Executive branch: monarch, prime minister, State Council (cabinet)              
                                                                                
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Stortinget)                          
with an Upper Chamber (Lagting) and a Lower Chamber (Odelsting)                 
                                                                                
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Hoiesterett)                                    
                                                                                
Leaders:                                                                        
                                                                                
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 Gro Harlem BRUNDTLAND                        
(since 3 November 1990)                                                         
                                                                                
Political parties and leaders:                                                  
Labor, Gro Harlem BRUNDTLAND;                                                   
Conservative, Kaci Kullmann FIVE;                                               
Center Party, Anne Enger LAHNSTEIN;                                             
Christian People's, Kjell Magne BONDEVIK;                                       
Socialist Left, Eric SOLHEIM;                                                   
Norwegian Communist, Kare Andre NILSEN;                                         
Progress, Carl I. HAGEN; Liberal, Arne FJORTOFT;                                
Finnmark List, leader NA                                                        
                                                                                
Suffrage: universal at age 18                                                   
                                                                                
Elections:                                                                      
                                                                                
Storting--last held on 11 September 1989 (next to be held                       
6 September 1993);                                                              
results--Labor 34.3%, Conservative 22.2%, Progress 13.0%, Socialist Left        
10.1%, Christian People's 8.5%, Center Party 6.6%, Finnmark List 0.3%,          
other 5%;                                                                       
seats--(165 total) Labor 63, Conservative 37, Progress 22, Socialist            
Left 17, Christian People's 14, Center Party 11, Finnmark List 1                
                                                                                
Communists: 15,500 est.; 5,500 Norwegian Communist Party (NKP);                 
10,000 Workers Communist Party Marxist-Leninist (AKP-ML, pro-Chinese)           
                                                                                
Member of: AfDB, AsDB, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, COCOM, CSCE, EBRD,                   
ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA,             
IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,                    
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, PCA, UN, UNAVEM,           
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIIMOG, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU,             
WHO, WIPO, WMO                                                                  
                                                                                
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Kjeld VIBE; Chancery at                   
2720 34th Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 333-6000;             
there are Norwegian Consulates General in Houston, Los Angeles,                 
Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco, and Consulates in Miami and New       
Orleans;                                                                        
                                                                                
US--Ambassador Loret Miller RUPPE; Embassy at Drammensveien 18,                 
0244 Oslo 2 (mailing address is APO New York 09085); telephone  47              
(2) 44-85-50                                                                    
                                                                                
Flag: 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)                                
                                                                                
ECONOMY                                                                         
Overview: Norway is a prosperous capitalist nation with the                     
resources to finance extensive welfare measures. Since 1975 exploitation        
of large crude oil and natural gas reserves has helped maintain high            
growth; for the past five years growth has averaged 4.1%, the                   
fourth-highest among OECD countries. Growth slackened in 1987-88                
partially because of the sharp drop in world oil prices, but picked             
up again in 1989. The Brundtland government plans to push hard on               
environmental issues, as well as cutting unemployment, improving                
child care, upgrading major industries, and negotiating an                      
EC - European Free Trade Association (EFTA) agreement on an Economic            
European Area.                                                                  
                                                                                
GDP: $74.2 billion, per capita $17,400; real growth rate 3.1%                   
(1990)                                                                          
                                                                                
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.1% (1990)                                   
                                                                                
Unemployment rate: 5.2% (1990, excluding people in                              
job-training programs)                                                          
Budget: revenues $47.9 billion; expenditures $48.7 billion,                     
including capital expenditures of $NA (1990)                                    
                                                                                
Exports: $33.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990);                                          
                                                                                
commodities--petroleum and petroleum products 25%, natural gas                  
11%, fish 7%, aluminum 6%, ships 3.5%, pulp and paper;                          
                                                                                
partners--EC 64.9%, Nordic countries 19.5%, developing countries                
6.9%, US 6.2%, Japan 1.7% (1990)                                                
                                                                                
Imports: $26.8 billion (c.i.f., 1990);                                          
                                                                                
commodities--machinery, fuels and lubricants, transportation                    
equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, clothing, ships;                              
                                                                                
partners--EC 46.3%, Nordic countries 25.7%, developing countries                
14.3%, US 8.1%, Japan 4.7% (1990)                                               
                                                                                
External debt: $15 billion (December 1990)                                      
                                                                                
Industrial production: growth rate 3.6% (1990)                                  
                                                                                
Electricity: 26,735,000 kW capacity; 121,685 million kWh produced,              
28,950 kWh per capita (1989)                                                    
                                                                                
Industries: petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp              
and paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing        
                                                                                
Agriculture: accounts for 2.8% of GNP and 6.4% of labor force;                  
among world's top 10 fishing nations; livestock output exceeds value            
of crops; over half of food needs imported; fish catch of 1.76 million          
metric tons in 1989                                                             
                                                                                
Economic aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $4.4                    
billion                                                                         
                                                                                
Currency: Norwegian krone (plural--kroner);                                     
1 Norwegian krone (NKr) = 100 ore                                               
                                                                                
Exchange rates: Norwegian kroner (NKr) per US$1--5.9060 (January                
1991), 6.2597 (1990), 6.9045 (1989), 6.5170 (1988), 6.7375 (1987), 7.3947       
(1986), 8.5972 (1985)                                                           
                                                                                
Fiscal year: calendar year                                                      
                                                                                
COMMUNICATIONS                                                                  
Railroads: 4,223 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; Norwegian State                 
Railways (NSB) operates 4,219 km (2,450 km electrified and 96 km double         
track); 4 km other                                                              
                                                                                
Highways: 79,540 km total; 18,600 km concrete, bituminous, stone                
block; 19,980 km bituminous treated; 40,960 km gravel, crushed stone, and       
earth                                                                           
                                                                                
Inland waterways: 1,577 km along west coast; 1.5-2.4 m draft                    
vessels maximum                                                                 
                                                                                
Pipelines: refined products, 53 km                                              
Ports: Oslo, Bergen, Fredrikstad, Kristiansand, Stavanger,                      
Trondheim                                                                       
                                                                                
Merchant marine: 867 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 23,270,845              
GRT/41,199,182 DWT; includes 11 passenger, 23 short-sea passenger,              
121 cargo, 3 passenger-cargo, 24 refrigerated cargo, 14 container, 50           
roll-on/roll-off cargo, 18 vehicle carrier, 1 railcar carrier, 186              
petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 98 chemical tanker, 69            
liquefied gas, 1 specialized tanker, 35 combination ore/oil, 204 bulk, 9        
combination bulk; note--the government has created a captive 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; the majority of         
ships (777) under the Norwegian flag are now registered with the NIS            
                                                                                
Civil air: 76 major transport aircraft                                          
                                                                                
Airports: 104 total, 103 usable; 64 with permanent-surface runways;             
none with runways over 3,659 m; 12 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;                  
16 with runways 1,220-2,439 m                                                   
                                                                                
Telecommunications: high-quality domestic and international                     
telephone, telegraph, and telex services; 3,102,000 telephones;                 
stations--8 AM, 46 (1,400 relays) FM, 55 (2,100 relays) TV; 4 coaxial           
submarine cables; communications satellite earth stations operating in          
the EUTELSAT, INTELSAT (1 Atlantic Ocean), MARISAT, and domestic systems        
                                                                                
DEFENSE FORCES                                                                  
Branches: Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy, Royal Norwegian Air             
Force, Home Guard                                                               
                                                                                
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,124,201; 942,158 fit for                  
military service; 31,813 reach military age (20) annually                       
                                                                                
Defense expenditures: $3.3 billion, 3.3% of GDP (1990)                          
                                                                                
