LAND[edit]

Continental Norway, 323,750 km² ; Svalbard, 62,160 km² ; Jan Mayen, 373 km² ; 3% arable, 2% meadows and pastures, 21% forested, 74% other

Land boundaries: 2,579 km

WATER[edit]

Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 4 nm (fishing 200 nm; 200 nm exclusive economic zone)

Coastline: mainland 3,419 km; islands 2,413 km (excludes long fjords and numerous small islands and minor indentations which total as much as 16,093 km overall)

PEOPLE[edit]

Population: 4,113,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 0.3%

Nationality: noun—Norwegian(s); adjective—Norwegian

Ethnic divisions: homogeneous white population, small Lappish minority

Religion: 95% Evangelical Lutheran, 4% other Protestant and Roman Catholic, 1% other

Language: Norwegian, small Lapp and Finnish-speaking minorities

Literacy: 100%

Labor force: 1.9 million; 8.6% agriculture, forestry, fishing, 21.2% mining and manufacturing, 5.8% banking and financial services, 8.1% construction, 16.9% commerce, 9.2% transportation and communication, 29.3% services; 1.4% unemployed (1979 average)

Organized labor: 60% of labor force

GOVERNMENT[edit]

Official name: Kingdom of Norway

Type: constitutional monarchy

Capital: Oslo

Political subdivisions: 19 counties, 2 territories, 404 communes, 47 towns

Legal system: mixture of customary law, civil law system, and common law traditions; constitution adopted 1814, modified 1884; Supreme Court renders advisory opinions to legislature when asked; legal education at University of Oslo; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

National holiday: Constitution Day, 17 May

Branches: legislative authority rests jointly with Crown and parliament (Storting); executive power vested in Crown but exercised by cabinet responsible to parliament; Supreme Court, 5 superior courts, 104 lower courts

Government leaders: King OLAV V; Prime Minister Kare WILLOCH

Suffrage: universal, but not compulsory, over age 20

Elections: held every four years (next in 1985)

Political parties and leaders: Labor, Gro Harlem Brundtland; Conservative, Jo Benkow; Center, Johan J. Jakobsen; Christian People's, Kare Kristiansen; Liberal, Odd Einar Dorum; Socialist Left, Berge Furre; Norwegian Communist, Hans I. Kleven; Progressive, Carl I. Hagen Voting strength (1981 election): Labor, 37.3%; Conservative, 31.6%; Christian People's, 9.3%; Center, 6.7%; Socialist Left (Socialist Electoral Alliance, formerly antitax), 4.9%; Liberal, 3.9%; Progressive, 4.5%; Norwegian Communist, 0.3%; Red Electoral Alliance, 0.7%; Liberal People's Party (antitax), 0.6%

Communists: 2,500 est.; a number of sympathizers as indicated by the 24,618 votes cast in the 1981 election for the Norwegian Communist Party and the Red Electoral Alliance

Member of: ADB, Council of Europe, DAC, EC (Free Trade Agreement), EFTA, ESRO (observer), FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICES, ICO, IDA, IEA (associate member), IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMCO, IMF, IPU, ITU, IWC—International Whaling Commission, IWC—International Wheat Council, NATO, Nordic Council, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG

ECONOMY[edit]

GNP: $55.4 billion in 1980, $13,549 per capita; 49% private consumption; 26% investment; 20% government; net foreign balance 2%; 1980 growth rate 3.6%, in constant prices; 4.8% average (1970-76)

Agriculture: animal husbandry predominates; main crops—feed grains, potatoes, fruits, vegetables; 40% self-sufficient; food shortages—food grains, sugar; caloric intake, 2,940 calories per day per capita (1969-70)

Fishing: catch 2.5 million metric tons (1979); exports $707 million (1979)

Major industries: oil and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, wood pulp, paper products, metals, chemicals

​Shortages: most raw materials with the exception of timber, petroleum, iron, copper, and ilmenite ore, dairy products and fish

Crude steel: 921,000 metric tons produced (1979), 230 kg per capita

Electric power: 20,000,000 kW capacity (1980); 83.986 billion kWh produced (1980), 20,520 kWh per capita

Exports: $18,712 million (f.o.b., 1980); principal items—oil, natural gas, metals, pulp and paper, fish products, ships, chemicals, oil

Imports: $16,955 million (c.i.f., 1980); principal items—foodstuffs, ships, fuels, motor vehicles, iron and steel, chemical compounds, textiles

Major trade partners: 55% EC (25% UK, 14% West Germany, 6% Denmark); 15% Sweden; 6% US; 2% Eastern Bloc countries (1979)

Aid: donor, bilateral economic aid authorized (ODA and OOF), $1.1 billion (1970-79)

Budget: (1980) revenues $15.0 billion, expenditures $18.7 billion

Monetary conversion rate: 1 kroner = US$0.202 (1980)

Fiscal year: calendar year

COMMUNICATIONS[edit]

Railroads: 4,257 km standard gauge (1.435 m); Norwegian State Railways (NSB) operates 4,241 km (2,440 km electrified and 91 km double track); 16 km privately owned and electrified

Highways: 78,116 km total; 17,699 km concrete and bitumen; 19,277 km bituminous treated; 41,140 km gravel, crushed stone, and earth

Inland waterways: 1,577 km; 1.5-2.4 m draft vessels maximum

Pipelines: refined products, 53 km

Ports: 9 major, 69 minor

Civil air: 51 major transport aircraft

Airfields: 103 total, 102 usable; 52 with permanent-surface runways; 12 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 15 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: high-quality domestic and international telephone, telegraph, and telex services; 1.73 million telephones (42.3 per 100 popl.); 40 AM, 685 FM, and 1,320 TV stations; 5 coaxial submarine cables; 6 domestic satellite stations

DEFENSE FORCES[edit]

Military manpower: males 15-49, 1,002,000; 815,000 fit for military service; 33,000 reach military age (20) annually Military budget: proposed for fiscal year ending 31 December 1982, $1.3 billion; about 8.8% of proposed central government budget