live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.32 years
male: 65.75 years
female: 72.98 years (2004 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.42 children born/woman (2004 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
100 (1999)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
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 Greenland
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland
local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat
local long form: none
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)
note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit
election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime minister
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)
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)
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
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
elections: last held on 3 December 2002 (next to be held by NA
December 2006)
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:
NA
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 Greenland
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.)