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The World Factbook 2002

         
  Netherlands  
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  Introduction
  Geography
  People
  Government
  Economy
  Communications
  Transportation
  Military
  Transnational Issues

In general, information available as of 1 January 2002
was used in the preparation of The World Factbook 2002.


This page was last updated on 1 January 2002


Map of Netherlands

Legend: Definition Definition Field Listing Field Listing
   Introduction    Netherlands
Background:
Definition Field Listing
The Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I but suffered a brutal invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EC, and participated in the introduction of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in 1999.
   Geography    Netherlands
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
52 30 N, 5 45 E
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
Europe
Area:
Definition Field Listing
total: 41,526 sq km
water: 7,643 sq km
land: 33,883 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1,027 km
border countries: Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
451 km
Maritime claims:
Definition Field Listing
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Zuidplaspolder -7 m
highest point: Vaalserberg 322 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
natural gas, petroleum, arable land
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 27%
permanent crops: 1%
other: 72% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
5,650 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
flooding
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles and refining activities; acid rain
Environment - international agreements:
Definition Field Listing
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde)
   People    Netherlands
Population:
Definition Field Listing
16,067,754 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 1,502,687; female 1,437,141)
15-64 years: 67.9% (male 5,548,188; female 5,362,412)
65 years and over: 13.8% (male 913,020; female 1,304,306) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
0.53% (2002 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing
11.58 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing
8.67 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
2.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing
4.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing
total population: 78.58 years
female: 81.59 years (2002 est.)
male: 75.7 years
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.65 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing
0.19% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing
15,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing
100 (1999 est.)
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women)
adjective: Dutch
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non-western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese and Indonesians) (1999 est.)
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Roman Catholic 31%, Protestant 21%, Muslim 4.4%, other 3.6%, unaffiliated 40% (1998)
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Dutch
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (2000 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
   Government    Netherlands
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands
conventional short form: Netherlands
local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden
local short form: Nederland
Government type:
Definition Field Listing
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
Definition Field Listing
Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
12 provinces (provincien, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland, Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland
Dependent areas:
Definition Field Listing
Aruba, Netherlands Antilles
Independence:
Definition Field Listing
1579 (from Spain); note - the northern provinces of the Low Country concluded the Union of Utrecht, but it was 1648 before Spain finally recognized their independence
National holiday:
Definition Field Listing
Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April
Constitution:
Definition Field Listing
adopted 1814; amended many times, last time 17 February 1983
Legal system:
Definition Field Listing
civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
Definition Field Listing
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Wim KOK (since 22 August 1994) and Vice Prime Ministers Annemarie JORRITSMA (since 3 August 1998) and Els BORST-EILERS (since 3 August 1998); note - Wim KOK and his cabinet resigned 16 April 2002 after taking blame for the massacre of Bosnian Muslims at Srebrenica in 1995 while they were under the protection of Dutch UN peacekeepers, but were asked to stay as a caretaker government until a new administration was formed after elections on 15 May 2002
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch
elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; vice prime ministers appointed by the monarch
note: there is also a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors that provides consultations to the prime minister on legislative and administrative policy
Legislative branch:
Definition Field Listing
bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: First Chamber - last held 25 May 1999 (next to be held 15 May 2003); Second Chamber - last held 15 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006)
election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDA 20, VVD 19, PvdA 15, D66 4, other 17; Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Christian Democrats 43, List Pim Fortuyn 26, Labor Party 23, VVD 23, Green Party 11, Socialist Party 9, D66 7, Christian Union 4, others 4
Judicial branch:
Definition Field Listing
Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Christian Democratic Appeal or CDA [Jan Peter BALKENENDE]; Christian Union Party [M. VAN DAALEN]; Democrats 66 or D66 [Thom DE GRAAF]; Green Party [Otto Ter HAAR]; Labor Party or PvdA [Adrianus MELKERT]; List Pim Fortuyn [leader NA]; People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Hans F. DIJKSTAL]; Socialist Party [Jan MARIJNISSEN]; a host of minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Federation of Netherlands Trade Union Movement (comprising Socialist and Catholic trade unions) and a Protestant trade union; Federation of Catholic and Protestant Employers Associations; Interchurch Peace Council or IKV; large multinational firms; the nondenominational Federation of Netherlands Enterprises
International organization participation:
Definition Field Listing
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Joris M. VOS
consulate(s): Boston
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York
FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430
telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300
chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Clifford M. SOBEL
embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague
mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715
telephone: [31] (70) 310-9209
FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688
consulate(s) general: Amsterdam
Flag description:
Definition Field Listing
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer
   Economy    Netherlands
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
The Netherlands is a prosperous and open economy depending heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 4% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Netherlands, along with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency on 1 January 2002. The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment. Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001, as part of the global economic slowdown, but for the four years before that, annual growth averaged nearly 4%, well above the EU average.
GDP:
Definition Field Listing
purchasing power parity - $413 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.1% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita:
Definition Field Listing
purchasing power parity - $25,800 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 3.3%
industry: 26.3%
services: 70.4% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.1% (1994)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
32.6 (1994)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing
4.5% (2001 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing
7.2 million (2000)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
services 73%, industry 23%, agriculture 4% (1998 est.)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing
2.4% (2001)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $134 billion
expenditures: $134 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.9% (2001)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing
87.953 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source:
Definition Field Listing
fossil fuel: 90.27%
hydro: 0.16%
other: 5.33% (2000)
nuclear: 4.24%
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing
100.712 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
4.031 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
22.946 billion kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock
Exports:
Definition Field Listing
$214 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
EU 78% (Germany 26%, Benelux 12%, France 12%, UK 11%, Italy 6%), Central and Eastern Europe, US (2000)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing
$195 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
EU 56% (Germany 18%, Benelux 10%, UK 9%, France 6%), US 10% (2000)
Economic aid - donor:
Definition Field Listing
ODA, $3.5 billion (2000 est.)
Currency:
Definition Field Listing
euro (EUR); Netherlands guilder (NLG)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Currency code:
Definition Field Listing
EUR; NLG
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Netherlands guilders per US dollar - 1.9837 (1998), 1.9513 (1997)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Netherlands
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing
9,132,400 (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing
4,081,891 (April 1999)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: highly developed and well maintained
domestic: the existing system of multi-conductor cables is gradually being replaced by fiber-optic cables; the density of cellular telephone traffic is rapidly increasing and further modernization of the system is expected in 2001, with the introduction of the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM)
international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (1996)
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 4, FM 58, shortwave 3 (1998)
Radios:
Definition Field Listing
15.3 million (1996)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
21 (plus 26 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions:
Definition Field Listing
8.1 million (1997)
Internet country code:
Definition Field Listing
.nl
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
Definition Field Listing
52 (2000)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing
8.7 million (2001)
   Transportation    Netherlands
Railways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 2,808 km
standard gauge: 2,808 km 1.435-m gauge (2,061 km electrified) (2001)
Highways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 116,500 km
paved: 104,850 km (including 2,235 km of expressways)
unpaved: 11,650 km (1999)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing
5,046 km (of which 3,745 km are canals)
note: 47% of total route length is usable by craft of 1,000-metric-ton capacity or larger
Pipelines:
Definition Field Listing
crude oil 418 km; petroleum products 965 km; natural gas 10,230 km
Ports and harbors:
Definition Field Listing
Amsterdam, Delfzijl, Dordrecht, Eemshaven, Groningen, Haarlem, Ijmuiden, Maastricht, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Utrecht, Vlissingen
Merchant marine:
Definition Field Listing
total: 622 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,587,662 GRT/5,251,529 DWT
note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 1, Canada 1, Denmark 5, Finland 5, Germany 55, Ireland 12, Norway 12, Sweden 17, United Kingdom 33, United States 12 (2002 est.)
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 380, chemical tanker 46, container 64, liquefied gas 16, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 15, passenger 9, petroleum tanker 28, refrigerated cargo 34, roll on/roll off 18, short-sea passenger 2, specialized tanker 5
Airports:
Definition Field Listing
28 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 20
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 1 (2001)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 6 (2001)
Heliports:
Definition Field Listing
1 (2001)
   Military    Netherlands
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (including Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Constabulary
Military manpower - military age:
Definition Field Listing
20 years of age (note - age 17 for cadets and midshipmen) (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 4,077,917 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 3,546,030 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males: 96,082
note: Netherlands has an all-volunteer, 74,100 force in 2001 (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Definition Field Listing
$6.5 billion (FY00/01 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing
1.5% (FY00/01 est.)
   Transnational Issues    Netherlands
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
none
Illicit drugs:
Definition Field Listing
major European producer of illicit amphetamine and other synthetic drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy

This page was last updated on 1 January 2002


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