Conference turris::scandia

248.0. "Facts about Sweden (CIA World Factbook)" by TLE::SAVAGE () Tue Jun 30 1992 14:12

   Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
   From: [email protected] (Jyrki Kuoppala)
   Subject: CIA World Factbook 1991 on nordic countries
   Sender: [email protected] (Usenet pseudouser id)
   Organization: Helsinki University of Technology, Finland
   Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1992 14:41:44 GMT
 
    Copied from the gopher server tree, definitions for terms available
    there.
 
 
Sweden

------------ Geography
Total area: 449,964 km2; land area: 410,928 km2

Comparative area: slightly smaller than California
 
Land boundaries: 2,205 km total; Finland 586 km, Norway 1,619 km
 
Coastline: 3,218 km
 
Maritime claims:
 Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
 Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
 Territorial sea: 12 nm
 
Climate: temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool,
partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north
 
Terrain: mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west
 
Natural resources: zinc, iron ore, lead, copper, silver, timber,
uranium, hydropower potential
 
Land use: arable land 7%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures
2%; forest and woodland 64%; other 27%; includes irrigated NEGL%
 
Environment: water pollution; acid rain
 
Note: strategic location along Danish Straits linking
Baltic and North Seas
 
------------ People
Population: 8,564,317 (July 1991), growth rate 0.4% (1991)
 
Birth rate: 13 births/1,000 population (1991)
 
Death rate: 11 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
 
Net migration rate: 3 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
 
Infant mortality rate: 6 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
 
Life expectancy at birth: 75 years male, 81 years female (1991)
 
Total fertility rate: 1.9 children born/woman (1991)
 
Nationality: noun--Swede(s); adjective--Swedish
 
    Ethnic divisions: homogeneous white population; small Lappish minority;
    foreign born or first-generation immigrants (Finns, Yugoslavs, Danes,
    Norwegians, Greeks, Turks) about 12%
 
    Religion: Evangelical Lutheran 94%, Roman Catholic 1.5%, Pentecostal
    1%, other 3.5% (1987)
 
    Language: Swedish, small Lapp- and Finnish-speaking minorities;
    immigrants speak native languages
 
    Literacy: 99% age 15 and over can read and write (1979 est.)
 
    Labor force: 4,572,000 (October 1990); government services 37.4%,
    mining, manufacturing, electricity, and water service 23.1%, private
    services 22.2%, transportation and communications 7%, construction
    6.3%, agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting 3.8%, other 0.2%
    (1988)
 
    Organized labor: 80% of labor force (1990 est.)
 
------------ Government
Long-form name: Kingdom of Sweden
 
Type: constitutional monarchy
 
Capital: Stockholm
 
    Administrative divisions: 24 provinces (lan, singular and plural);
    Alvsborgs Lan, Blekinge Lan, Gavleborgs Lan, Goteborgs och Bohus Lan,
    Gotlands Lan, Hallands Lan, Jamtlands Lan, Jonkopings Lan, Kalmar Lan,
    Kopparbergs Lan, Kristianstads Lan, Kronobergs Lan, Malmohus Lan,
    Norrbottens Lan, Orebro Lan, Ostergotlands Lan, Skaraborgs Lan,
    Sodermanlands Lan, Stockholms Lan, Uppsala Lan, Varmlands Lan,
    Vasterbottens Lan, Vasternorrlands Lan, Vastmanlands Lan
 
Independence: 6 June 1809, constitutional monarchy established
 
Constitution: 1 January 1975
 
    Legal system: civil law system influenced by customary law; accepts
    compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
 
National holiday: Day of the Swedish Flag, 6 June
 
Executive branch: monarch, prime minister, Cabinet
 
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Riksdag)
 
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Hogsta Domstolen)
 
Leaders:
 
Chief of State--King CARL XVI Gustaf (since 19 September 1973);
Heir Apparent Princess VICTORIA Ingrid Alice Desiree, daughter of the
King (born 14 July 1977);
 
Head of Government--Prime Minister Carl BILDT (since 3 October
1991)
 
Political parties and leaders:
ruling four-party coalition consists of the
Moderate Party (conservative), Carl BILDT;
Liberal People's Party, Bengt WESTERBERG;
Center Party, Olof JOHANSSON; and the
Christian Democratic Party, Alf SVENSSON;
Social Democratic Party, Ingvar CARLSSON;
New Democracy Party, Count Ian WACHMEISTER;
Left Party (VP; Communist), Lars WERNER;
Swedish Communist Party (SKP), Rune PETTERSSON;
Communist Workers' Party, Rolf HAGEL;
Green Party, no formal leader
 
Suffrage: universal at age 18
 
Elections:
 
Riksdag--last held 15 September 1991 (next to be held
September 1994);
results--Social Democratic 37.6%, Moderate (conservative)
21.9%, Liberal People's Party 9.1%, Center Party 8.5%, Christian
Democrats 7.1%, New Democracy 6.7%, Left Party (Communist) 4.5%, Green
Party 3.4%, other 1.2%;
seats--(349 total) Social Democratic 138, Moderate (conservative) 80,
Liberal People's Party 33, Center Party 31, Christian Democrats 26, New
Democracy 25, Left Party (Communist) 16; note: the Green Party leaves
the Riksdag because it received less than the required 4% of the vote
 
Communists: VP and SKP; VP, formerly the Left Party-Communists,
is reported to have roughly 17,800 members and attracted 5.8% of the vote
in the 1988 election; VP dropped the Communist label in 1990, but
maintains a Marxist ideology
 
Member of: AfDB, AG (observer) AsDB, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, CSCE,
EBRD, ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, G-6, G-8, G-9, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTERPOL,
INTELSAT, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM (guest), NC,
NEA, NIB, OECD, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIFIL, UNIIMOG, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
 
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Anders THUNBORG; Chancery at
Suite 1200, 600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington DC 20037;
telephone (202) 944-5600; there are Swedish Consulates General in
Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and New York;
 
US--Ambassador Charles E. REDMAN; Embassy at Strandvagen 101,
S-115 89 Stockholm; telephone [46] (8) 783-5300
 
Flag: blue with a yellow cross 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: Aided by a long period of peace and neutrality during World
    War I through World War II, Sweden has achieved an enviable standard of
    living under a mixed system of high-tech capitalism and extensive
    welfare benefits. It has essentially full employment, a modern
    distribution system, excellent internal and external communications,
    and a skilled labor force. Timber, hydropower, and iron ore constitute
    the resource base of an economy that is heavily oriented toward foreign
    trade. Privately owned firms account for about 90% of industrial
    output, of which the engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and
    exports. 
    
    For some observers, the Swedish model has succeeded in making economic
    efficiency and social egalitarianism complementary, rather than
    competitive, goals. Others argue that the Swedish model is on the verge
    of collapsing by pointing to the serious economic problems Sweden faces
    in 1991: high inflation and absenteeism, growing unemployment and
    deficits, and declining international competitiveness. In 1990, to
    improve the economy, the government approved a mandate for Sweden to
    seek EC membership and an austerity and privatization package and
    implemented a major tax reform. These reforms may succeed in turning
    the economy around in 1992.
 
    GDP: $137.8 billion, per capita $16,200; real growth rate 0.3% (1990)
 
    Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10.9% (1990)
 
    Unemployment rate: 1.6% (1990)
 
    Budget: revenues $60.1 billion; expenditures $56.7 billion, including
    capital expenditures of $NA (FY89)
 
Exports: $57.5 billion (f.o.b., 1990);
 commodities--machinery, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp
 and wood, iron and steel products, chemicals, petroleum and
 petroleum products;
 partners--EC 54.4%, (FRG 14.2%, UK 10.1%, Denmark 6.6%), US 8.6%,
 Norway 8.2%
 
Imports: $54.7 billion (c.i.f., 1990);
 commodities--machinery, petroleum and petroleum products,
 chemicals, motor vehicles, foodstuffs, iron and steel, clothing;
 partners--EC 55.3%, US 8.4%
 
External debt: $14.1 billion (December 1990)
 
Industrial production: growth rate - 2.0% (1990)
 
Electricity: 39,716,000 kW capacity; 142,000 million kWh produced,
16,700 kWh per capita (1990)
 
Industries: iron and steel, precision equipment (bearings, radio
and telephone parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed
foods, motor vehicles
 
Agriculture: animal husbandry predominates, with milk and dairy
products accounting for 37% of farm income; main crops--grains, sugar
beets, potatoes; 100% self-sufficient in grains and potatoes, 85%
self-sufficient in sugar beets
 
Economic aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $10.3
billion
 
Currency: Swedish krona (plural--kronor);
1 Swedish krona (SKr) = 100 ore
 
Exchange rates: Swedish kronor (SKr) per US$1--5.6402 (January
1991), 5.9188 (1990), 6.4469 (1989), 6.1272 (1988), 6.3404 (1987), 7.1236
(1986), 8.6039 (1985)
 
Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
 
------------ Communications
Railroads: 12,000 km total; Swedish State Railways (SJ)--10,819 km
1.435-meter standard gauge, 6,955 km electrified and 1,152 km double
track; 182 km 0.891-meter gauge; 117 km rail ferry service; privately
owned railways--511 km 1.435-meter standard gauge (332 km electrified);
371 km 0.891-meter gauge (all electrified)
 
Highways: 97,400 km (51,899 km paved, 20,659 km gravel, 24,842 km
unimproved earth)
 
Inland waterways: 2,052 km navigable for small steamers and barges
 
Pipelines: 84 km natural gas
 
Ports: Gavle, Goteborg, Halmstad, Helsingborg, Kalmar, Malmo,
Stockholm; numerous secondary and minor ports
 
Merchant marine: 182 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,226,923
GRT/2,879,057 DWT; includes 9 short-sea passenger, 29 cargo, 3 container,
45 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 11 vehicle carrier, 2 railcar carrier,
28 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 27 chemical tanker,
6 specialized tanker, 1 liquefied gas, 8 combination ore/oil,
12 bulk, 1 combination bulk
 
Civil air: 115 major transports
 
Airports: 256 total, 254 usable; 137 with permanent-surface
runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 10 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
92 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
 
Telecommunications: excellent domestic and international
facilities; 8,200,000 telephones; stations--4 AM, 56 (321 relays) FM,
111 (925 relays) TV; 5 submarine coaxial cables; communication satellite
earth stations operating in the INTELSAT (1 Atlantic Ocean) and EUTELSAT
systems
 
------------ Defense Forces
Branches: Swedish Army, Royal Swedish Navy, Royal Swedish Air Force
 
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 2,136,227; 1,865,645 fit for
military service; 55,198 reach military age (19) annually
 
Defense expenditures: $4.9 billion, 2.5% of GDP (FY90)
 
                                      

    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    From: [email protected] (Mats Winberg)
    Subject: Re: CIA World Factbook 1991 on nordic countries
    Sender: [email protected]
    Organization: Ericsson
    Date: Wed, 1 Jul 1992 09:22:14 GMT
 
    [email protected] (Jyrki Kuoppala) writes:
 
 
>Sweden
>------------ Geography
>Total area: 449,964 km2; land area: 410,928 km2
 
 
>Comparative area: slightly smaller than California
   Is that so, I thought the only states bigger than Sweden were Texas
   and Alaska ?
 
 
>Independence: 6 June 1809, constitutional monarchy established
   Sweden has been independent since early 16th century when Danish
   influence ended..
 
>National holiday: Day of the Swedish Flag, 6 June
   The Day of the Swedish Flag is no holiday in Sweden.
 
 
>Manpower availability: males 15-49, 2,136,227; 1,865,645 fit for
   Isn't the age limit 47 ?
 
 
   Mats Winberg
   [email protected]
 
 
                                          

    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    From: [email protected] (Jari Partanen)
    Subject: Statistics: This is SWEDEN
    Sender: [email protected] (Usenet News admin)
    Organization: University of Turku, Finland
    Date: Thu, 16 Nov 1995 09:55:49 GMT
 
 
    In the following I shall tell those statistics, in which Sweden was in
    the top (or bottom) of the list of 15 countries of European Union in
    the booklet "Taskutilasto: Suomi ja muut EU-maat" (Tilastokeskus,
    1995). 
    
______________________________
 
The biggest lake of EU is V�nern in Sweden with 5585 square kilometers.
 
In most of Sweden farmland is a rare sight (only 6.7 % of Sweden is
farmland, the lowest percentage in EU).
 
The oil-rich Norwegians are not the only Nordic people, who are
blessed with natural resources: Sweden produces 18728000 tons of
iron ore in a year (1993), which is three quarters of the whole
production of EU.
 
Sweden is also EU's leading producer of timber with 53 million cube
meters in a year (1992).
 
The heavy nature of Sweden's economy is described by the statistics
that Sweden consumes more electricity per inhabitant than any other
EU-country (16655 kWh/person , 1992).
 
However, the Swedes have stopped investing money: investments are only
14.3 % of GNP, which is the lowest percentage in EU.
 
Swedes do not believe in medium-stage education (whatever that is):
only 6.8% of the Swedes are at the moment studying at that level,
which is less than anywhere else in EU.
 
What the Swedes believe in is research: 3.1 % of GNP is put into
research, more than elsewhere in EU.
 
In Sweden there are telephones everywhere: telephone density
685 telephones / 1000 inhabitants is EU's highest (1992).
 
What do the Swedes eat? Their consumption of meat is EU's
lowest, only 61 kg /person /year (1992).
 
But they are no vegetarians either: the Swedes eat only 49 kg of
vegetables in a year (1992), less than any other EU-citizens.
 
The Swedish women are hard-working: they constitute 48.9 % of
people at work (1993; the highest percentage of EU).
 
However, they still find time to bear children: an average Swedish
woman bears 2.0 children, which is EU's record.
 
Swedes do not honour the institution called marriage: only 3.9 %
of the Swedes get married in a year (1993), which is less than
elsewhere in EU.
 
Also majority of children are born outside marriage, 50.4 % (1993),
which is EU's record.
           
The Swedes live long: the life expectancy of Swedish men is 75.5
years (1993), which is EU's highest.
 
Thus also the percentage of old people (over 65) is EU's largest,
17.6 % of the population.
 
Now, this may be a shockingly surprising piece of information:
Sweden has the highest taxes in EU (53.3 % of GNP in 1994).
 
This money largely goes to social welfare: the percentage of social
expenses of GNP is 40 %, the highest in EU.
 
______________________________ 
 
Best regards,
 
Jari P.       http://www.utu.fi/~partanen