FAROE ISLANDS                                                                   
(part of the Danish realm)                                                      
GEOGRAPHY                                                                       
Total area: 1,400 km2; land area: 1,400 km2                                     
                                                                                
Comparative area: slightly less than eight times the size of                    
Washington, DC                                                                  
                                                                                
Land boundaries: none                                                           
                                                                                
Coastline: 764 km                                                               
                                                                                
Maritime claims:                                                                
                                                                                
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;                                                 
                                                                                
Territorial sea: 3 nm                                                           
                                                                                
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%                                           
                                                                                
Environment: precipitous terrain limits habitation to small coastal             
lowlands; archipelago of 18 inhabited islands and a few uninhabited             
islets                                                                          
                                                                                
Note: strategically located along important sea lanes in                        
northeastern Atlantic about midway between Iceland and Shetland Islands         
                                                                                
PEOPLE                                                                          
Population: 48,151 (July 1991), growth rate 0.9% (1991)                         
                                                                                
Birth rate: 17 births/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Death rate: 8 deaths/1,000 population (1991)                                    
                                                                                
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)                          
                                                                                
Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)                        
                                                                                
Life expectancy at birth: 75 years male, 81 years female (1991)                 
                                                                                
Total fertility rate: 2.2 children born/woman (1991)                            
                                                                                
Nationality: noun--Faroese (sing., pl.); adjective--Faroese                     
                                                                                
Ethnic divisions: homogeneous Scandinavian population                           
                                                                                
Religion: Evangelical Lutheran                                                  
                                                                                
Language: Faroese (derived from Old Norse), Danish                              
                                                                                
Literacy: NA% (male NA%, female NA%)                                            
                                                                                
Labor force: 17,585; largely engaged in fishing, manufacturing,                 
transportation, and commerce                                                    
                                                                                
Organized labor: NA                                                             
                                                                                
GOVERNMENT                                                                      
Long-form name: none                                                            
                                                                                
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: part of the Danish realm; self-governing overseas                 
administrative division of Denmark                                              
                                                                                
Constitution: Danish                                                            
                                                                                
Legal system: Danish                                                            
                                                                                
National holiday: Birthday of the Queen, 16 April (1940)                        
                                                                                
Executive branch: Danish monarch, high commissioner, prime                      
minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet (Landsstyri)                           
                                                                                
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Logting)                             
                                                                                
Judicial branch: none                                                           
                                                                                
Leaders:                                                                        
                                                                                
Chief of State--Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972),                     
represented by High Commissioner Bent KLINTE (since NA);                        
                                                                                
Head of Government--Prime Minister Atli P. DAM (since 15                        
January 1991)                                                                   
                                                                                
Political parties and leaders:                                                  
two-party ruling coalition--Social Democratic Party, Atli P. DAM;               
People's Party, Jogvan SUNDSTEIN;                                               
                                                                                
opposition--Cooperation Coalition Party, Pauli ELLEFSEN;                        
Republican Party, Signer HANSEN;                                                
Progressive and Fishing Industry Party-Christian People's Party                 
(PFIP-CPP), leader NA; Progress Party, leader NA; Home Rule Party, Hilmar       
KASS                                                                            
                                                                                
Suffrage: universal at age 20                                                   
                                                                                
Elections:                                                                      
                                                                                
Faroese Parliament--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--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               
                                                                                
Communists: insignificant number                                                
                                                                                
Member of:                                                                      
                                                                                
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 been enjoying the affluent                 
living standards of the Danes and other Scandinavians,                          
now must cope with the decline of the all-important fishing                     
industry and with an external debt twice the size of annual                     
income. 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; one                   
estimate foresaw a 25% drop in fish catch in 1990 alone. Half the               
fishing fleet is for sale, and the 22 fish-processing plants work               
at only half capacity. The government no longer can maintain its                
high level of spending on roads and tunnels, hospitals, sports                  
facilities, and other social welfare programs.                                  
                                                                                
GDP: $662 million, per capita $14,000; real growth rate 3%                      
(1989 est.)                                                                     
                                                                                
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.0% (1988)                                   
                                                                                
Unemployment rate: NA%, but increasing                                          
                                                                                
Budget: revenues $442 million; expenditures $442 million, including             
capital expenditures of NA (1989)                                               
                                                                                
Exports: $343 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--fish and fish products 88%, animal feedstuffs,                     
transport equipment;                                                            
                                                                                
partners--Denmark 16%, UK 14%, FRG 13.4%, US 10%, France 9%,                    
Japan 5%                                                                        
                                                                                
Imports: $344 million (c.i.f., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--machinery and transport equipment 30%,                             
manufactures 16%, food and livestock 15%, chemicals 6%, fuels 4%;               
                                                                                
partners: Denmark 44%, Norway 16%, FRG 6%, Sweden 6%, US 3%                     
                                                                                
External debt: $1.3 billion (1989)                                              
                                                                                
Industrial production: growth rate NA%                                          
                                                                                
Electricity: 80,000 kW capacity; 280 million kWh produced,                      
5,910 kWh per capita (1989)                                                     
                                                                                
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: none                                                              
                                                                                
Currency: Danish krone (plural--kroner); 1 Danish krone                         
(DKr) = 100 ore                                                                 
                                                                                
Exchange rates: Danish kroner (DKr) per US$1--5.817 (January                    
1991), 6.189 (1990), 7.310 (1989), 6.732 (1988), 6.840 (1987), 8.091            
(1986), 10.596 (1985)                                                           
                                                                                
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March                                                   
                                                                                
COMMUNICATIONS                                                                  
Highways: 200 km                                                                
                                                                                
Ports: Torshavn, Tvoroyri                                                       
                                                                                
Merchant marine: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 17,249                    
GRT/11,887 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 2 cargo, 2                      
roll-on/roll-off cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo; note--a subset of the             
Danish register                                                                 
                                                                                
Airports: 1 with permanent surface runway 1,220-2,439 m                         
                                                                                
Telecommunications: good international communications; fair                     
domestic facilities; 27,900 telephones; stations--1 AM, 3 (10 repeaters)        
FM, 3 (29 repeaters) TV; 3 coaxial submarine cables                             
                                                                                
DEFENSE FORCES                                                                  
Branches: no organized native military forces; only a small                     
Police Force is maintained                                                      
                                                                                
Note: defense is the responsibility of Denmark                                  
                                                                                
