|
|
Flag
of North Korea
Flag Description
North Korea:
three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and
blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the
red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star
Map of
North Korea
|
Background:
|
An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea
was occupied by Japan in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese
War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire
peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the
northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored Communist
domination. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to
conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the
southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its
founder President KIM Il-so'ng, adopted a policy of
ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a
check against excessive Soviet or Communist Chinese
influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat
to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and
molded political, economic, and military policies around the
core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea
under Pyongyang's control. KIM's son, the current ruler KIM
Jong Il, was officially designated as his father's successor
in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role
until the elder KIM's death in 1994. After decades of
economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK
since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid
to feed its population while continuing to expend resources
to maintain an army of 1 million. North Korea's long-range
missile development, as well as its nuclear, chemical, and
biological weapons programs and massive conventional armed
forces, are of major concern to the international community.
In December 2002, following revelations that the DPRK was
pursuing a nuclear weapons program based on enriched uranium
in violation of a 1994 agreement with the US to freeze and
ultimately dismantle its existing plutonium-based program,
North Korea expelled monitors from the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA). In January 2003, it declared its
withdrawal from the international Non-Proliferation Treaty.
In mid-2003 Pyongyang announced it had completed the
reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel rods (to extract
weapons-grade plutonium) and was developing a "nuclear
deterrent." Beginning in August 2003, North Korea, China,
Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the US have participated in
the Six-Party Talks aimed at resolving the stalemate over
the DPRK's nuclear programs. North Korea pulled out of the
talks in November 2005. It test-fired ballistic missiles in
July 2006 and tested a nuclear weapon in October 2006. In
October 2006, the DRPK announced that it would return to the
Six-Party Talks. The Talks reconvened in December 2006. |
|
Location:
|
Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula
bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China
and South Korea |
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
40 00 N, 127 00 E |
|
Map references:
|
Asia |
|
Area:
|
total: 120,540 sq km
land: 120,410 sq km
water: 130 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly smaller than Mississippi |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 1,673 km
border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km,
Russia 19 km |
|
Coastline:
|
2,495 km |
|
Maritime claims:
|
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
note: military boundary line 50 nm in the Sea of
Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow
Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without
permission are banned |
|
Climate:
|
temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer |
|
Terrain:
|
mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow
valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
|
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
|
Natural resources:
|
coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore,
copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower |
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 22.4%
permanent crops: 1.66%
other: 75.94% (2005) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
14,600 sq km (2003) |
|
Natural hazards:
|
late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding;
occasional typhoons during the early fall |
|
Environment - current issues:
|
water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water;
waterborne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and
degradation |
|
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
|
Geography - note:
|
strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia;
mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated |
|
Population:
|
23,301,725 (July 2007 est.) |
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years: 23.3% (male 2,758,826/female 2,679,093)
15-64 years: 68.1% (male 7,852,282/female 8,024,429)
65 years and over: 8.5% (male 709,599/female
1,277,496) (2007 est.) |
|
Median age:
|
total: 32.4 years
male: 30.9 years
female: 33.8 years (2007 est.) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
0.785% (2007 est.) |
|
Birth rate:
|
15.06 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
|
Death rate:
|
7.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
|
Net migration rate:
|
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.979 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.555 male(s)/female
total population: 0.945 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
|
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total: 22.56 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.2 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 20.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
|
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population: 71.92 years
male: 69.18 years
female: 74.8 years (2007 est.) |
|
Total fertility rate:
|
2.05 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
NA |
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
|
NA |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
NA |
|
Nationality:
|
noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and
a few ethnic Japanese |
|
Religions:
|
traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and
syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost
nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to
provide illusion of religious freedom |
|
Languages:
|
Korean |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% |
|
Country name:
|
conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic
of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea
local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk
local short form: Choson
abbreviation: DPRK |
|
Government type:
|
Communist state one-man dictatorship |
|
Capital:
|
name: Pyongyang
geographic coordinates: 39 01 N, 125 45 E
time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington,
DC during Standard Time) |
|
Administrative divisions:
|
9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities (si,
singular and plural)
provinces: Chagang-do (Chagang), Hamgyong-bukto
(North Hamgyong), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong),
Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae), Hwanghae-namdo (South
Hwanghae), Kangwon-do (Kangwon), P'yongan-bukto (North
P'yongan), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan), Yanggang-do (Yanggang)
municipalities: Kaesong-si (Kaesong), Najin
Sonbong-si (Najin), Namp'o-si (Namp'o), P'yongyang-si
(Pyongyang) |
|
Independence:
|
15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
|
National holiday:
|
Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK),
9 September (1948) |
|
Constitution:
|
adopted 1948; completely revised 27 December 1972, revised
again in April 1992, and September 1998 |
|
Legal system:
|
based on Prussian civil law system with Japanese influences
and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of
legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction |
|
Suffrage:
|
17 years of age; universal |
|
Executive branch:
|
chief of state: KIM Jong Il (since July 1994); note -
on 3 September 2003, rubberstamp Supreme People's Assembly
(SPA) reelected KIM Jong Il chairman of the National Defense
Commission, a position accorded nation's "highest
administrative authority"; SPA reelected KIM Yong Nam
president of its Presidium also with responsibility of
representing state and receiving diplomatic credentials
head of government: Premier KIM Yong Il (since 11
April 2007); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom Gi (since 5 September
1998), JON Sung Hun (since 3 September 2003), RO Tu Chol
(since 3 September 2003)
cabinet: Naegak (cabinet) members, except for
Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by SPA
elections: last held in September 2003 (next to be
held in September 2008)
election results: KIM Jong Il and KIM Yong Nam were
only nominees for positions and ran unopposed |
|
Legislative branch:
|
unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui
(687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held
in August 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - NA; ruling party approves a list of
candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats
are held by minor parties |
|
Judicial branch:
|
Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's
Assembly) |
|
Political parties and leaders:
|
major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il];
minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong] (under
KWP control), Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae] (under
KWP control) |
|
Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
none |
|
International organization participation:
|
ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, IPU,
ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New
York |
|
Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US
as consular protecting power |
|
Flag description:
|
three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width),
and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side
of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star
|
|
Economy - overview:
|
North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and
isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions.
Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result
of years of underinvestment and shortages of spare parts.
Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. Due
in part to severe summer flooding followed by dry weather
conditions in the fall of 2006, the nation has suffered its
12th year of food shortages because of on-going systemic
problems, including a lack of arable land, collective
farming practices, and chronic shortages of tractors and
fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed
the people of North Korea to escape mass starvation since
famine threatened in 1995, but the population continues to
suffer from prolonged malnutrition and poor living
conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources
needed for investment and civilian consumption. In 2004, the
regime formalized an arrangement whereby private "farmers'
markets" were allowed to begin selling a wider range of
goods. It also permitted some private farming on an
experimental basis in an effort to boost agricultural
output. In October 2005, the regime reversed some of these
policies by forbidding private sales of grains and
reinstituting a centralized food rationing system. By
December 2005, the regime terminated most international
humanitarian assistance operations in North Korea (calling
instead for developmental assistance only) and restricted
the activities of remaining international and
non-governmental aid organizations such as the World Food
Program. External food aid now comes primarily from China
and South Korea in the form of grants and long-term
concessional loans. Firm political control remains the
Communist government's overriding concern, which will likely
inhibit the loosening of economic regulations. |
|
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$40 billion
note: North Korea does not publish any reliable
National Income Accounts data; the datum shown here is
derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) GDP estimates for
North Korea that were made by Angus MADDISON in a study
conducted for the OECD; his figure for 1999 was extrapolated
to 2006 using estimated real growth rates for North Korea's
GDP and an inflation factor based on the US GDP deflator;
the result was rounded to the nearest $10 billion (2006
est.) |
|
GDP (official exchange rate):
|
NA (2006 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
1% (2006 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita (PPP):
|
$1,800 (2006 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture: 30%
industry: 34%
services: 36% (2002 est.) |
|
Labor force:
|
9.6 million |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture: 36%
industry and services: 64% |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
NA% |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
NA% |
|
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
NA% |
|
Budget:
|
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
|
Agriculture - products:
|
rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork,
eggs |
|
Industries:
|
military products; machine building, electric power,
chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite,
graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals),
metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism |
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
NA% |
|
Electricity - production:
|
21.71 billion kWh (2004) |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
20.19 billion kWh (2004) |
|
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2004) |
|
Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2004) |
|
Oil - production:
|
138.5 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption:
|
25,000 bbl/day (2004) |
|
Oil - exports:
|
NA bbl/day |
|
Oil - imports:
|
22,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
|
Natural gas - production:
|
0 cu m (2004 est.) |
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
0 cu m (2004 est.) |
|
Exports:
|
$1.34 billion f.o.b. (2005) |
|
Exports - commodities:
|
minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including
armaments), textiles, agricultural and fishery products |
|
Exports - partners:
|
China 35%, South Korea 24%, Thailand 9%, Japan 9% (2005)
|
|
Imports:
|
$2.72 billion c.i.f. (2005) |
|
Imports - commodities:
|
petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment, textiles,
grain |
|
Imports - partners:
|
China 42%, South Korea 28%, Russia 9%, Thailand 8% (2005)
|
|
Debt - external:
|
$12 billion (1996 est.) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$NA; note - approximately 350,000 metric tons in food aid,
worth approximately $118 million, through the World Food
Program appeal in 2004, plus additional aid from bilateral
donors and non-governmental organizations |
|
Currency (code):
|
North Korean won (KPW) |
|
Exchange rates:
|
official: North Korean won per US dollar - 141 (2006), 170
(December 2004), 150 (December 2002), market: North Korean
won per US dollar - 2,500-3,000 (December 2006) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
calendar year |
|
Airports:
|
77 (2006) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 22
1,524 to 2,437 m: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 41
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 20
914 to 1,523 m: 13
under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
|
Heliports:
|
22 (2006) |
|
Pipelines:
|
oil 154 km (2006) |
|
Railways:
|
total: 5,214 km
standard gauge: 5,214 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km
electrified) (2005) |
|
Roadways:
|
total: 31,200 km
paved: 1,997 km
unpaved: 29,203 km (1999 est.) |
|
Waterways:
|
| |