Netherlands

Geography

Location: Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany

Map references: Europe

Area:
total area: 37,330 sq km
land area: 33,920 sq km
comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey

Land boundaries: total 1,027 km, Belgium 450 km, Germany 577 km

Coastline: 451 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: none

Climate: temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters

Terrain: mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast

Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, fertile soil

Land use:
arable land: 26%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 32%
forest and woodland: 9%
other: 32%

Irrigated land: 5,500 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: 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
natural hazards: the extensive system of dikes and dams, protects nearly one-half of the total area from being flooded
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Desertification, Law of the Sea

Note: located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde)

People

Population: 15,452,903 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 18% (female 1,382,057; male 1,445,451)
15-64 years: 68% (female 5,184,224; male 5,369,018)
65 years and over: 14% (female 1,238,336; male 833,817) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.52% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 12.42 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 8.48 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 1.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.95 years
male: 74.9 years
female: 81.17 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.56 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women)
adjective: Dutch

Ethnic divisions: Dutch 96%, Moroccans, Turks, and other 4% (1988)

Religions: Roman Catholic 34%, Protestant 25%, Muslim 3%, other 2%, unaffiliated 36% (1991)

Languages: Dutch

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1979 est.)
total population: 99%

Labor force: 6.4 million (1993)
by occupation: services 71.4%, manufacturing and construction 24.6%, agriculture 4.0% (1992)

Government

Names:
conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands
conventional short form: Netherlands
local long form: Koninkrijk de Nederlanden
local short form: Nederland

Digraph: NL

Type: constitutional monarchy

Capital: Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government

Administrative divisions: 12 provinces (provincien, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland, Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland

Dependent areas: Aruba, Netherlands Antilles

Independence: 1579 (from Spain)

National holiday: Queen's Day, 30 April (1938)

Constitution: 17 February 1983

Legal system: civil law system incorporating French penal theory; judicial review in the Supreme Court of legislation of lower order rather than Acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM-ALEXANDER, Prince of Orange, son of Queen Beatrix (born 27 April 1967)
head of government: Prime Minister Willem (Wim) KOK (since 22 August 1994); Vice Prime Minister Hans DIJKSTAL and Hans VAN MIERLO (since 22 August 1994)
cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the prime minister

Legislative branch: bicameral legislature (Staten Generaal)
First Chamber (Eerste Kamer): members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms; elections last held 9 June l991 (next to be held 9 June 1995); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (75 total) number of seats by party NA
Second Chamber (Tweede Kamer): members directly elected for four-year terms; elections last held on 3 May 1994 (next to be held in May 1999); results - PvdA 24.3%, CDA 22.3%, VVD 20.4%, D'66 16.5%, other 16.5%; seats - (150 total) PvdA 37, CDA 34, VVD 31, D'66 24, other 24

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (De Hoge Raad)

Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), Hans HELGERS; Labor (PvdA), Wim KOK; Liberal (VVD - People's Party for Freedom and Democracy), Frits BOLKESTEIN; Democrats '66 (D'66), Hans van MIERLO; a host of minor parties

Other political or pressure groups: large multinational firms; Federation of Netherlands Trade Union Movement (comprising Socialist and Catholic trade unions) and a Protestant trade union; Federation of Catholic and Protestant Employers Associations; the nondenominational Federation of Netherlands Enterprises; and Interchurch Peace Council (IKV)

Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EBRD, EC, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, ESCAP, FAO, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNOMOZ, UNOMUR, UNPROFOR, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Adriaan JACOBOVITS DE SZEGED
chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 244-5300
FAX: [1] (202) 362-3430
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kirk Terry DORNBUSH
embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ The Hague
mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, the Hague; APO AE 09715
telephone: [31] (70) 310-9209
FAX: [31] (70) 361-4688
consulate(s) general: Amsterdam

Flag: 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

Overview: This highly developed and affluent economy is based on private enterprise. The government makes its presence felt, however, through many regulations, permit requirements, and welfare programs affecting most aspects of economic activity. The trade and financial services sector contributes over 50% of GDP. Industrial activity provides about 25% of GDP and is led by the food-processing, oil-refining, and metalworking industries. The highly mechanized agricultural sector employs only 4% of the labor force, but provides large surpluses for export and the domestic food-processing industry. Indeed the Netherlands ranks third worldwide in value of agricultural exports, behind the US and France. High unemployment and a sizable budget deficit are currently the most serious economic problems. Many of the economic issues of the 1990s will reflect the course of European economic integration.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $275.8 billion (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate: 2% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $17,940 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (December 1994)

Unemployment rate: 8.8% (December 1994)

Budget:
revenues: $109.9 billion
expenditures: $122.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992 est.)

Exports: $153 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: metal products, chemicals, processed food and tobacco, agricultural products
partners: EC 77% (Germany 27%, Belgium-Luxembourg 15%, UK 10%), Central and Eastern Europe 10%, US 4% (1991)

Imports: $137 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: raw materials and semifinished products, consumer goods, transportation equipment, crude oil, food products
partners: EC 64% (Germany 26%, Belgium-Luxembourg 14%, UK 8%), US 8% (1991)

External debt: $0

Industrial production: growth rate -1.5% (1993 est.); accounts for 25% of GDP

Electricity:
capacity: 17,520,000 kW
production: 72.4 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 5,100 kWh (1993)

Industries: agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, fishing, construction, microelectronics

Agriculture: accounts for 4.6% of GDP; animal production predominates; crops - grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; shortages of grain, fats, and oils

Illicit drugs: important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; European producer of illicit amphetamines and other synthetic drugs

Economic aid:
donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $19.4 billion

Currency: 1 Netherlands guilder, gulden, or florin (f.) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: Netherlands guilders, gulden, or florins (f.) per US$1 - 1.7178 (January 1995), 1.8200 (1994), 1.8573 (1993), 1.7585 (1992), 1.8697 (1991), 1.8209 (1990)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Transportation

Railroads:
total: 2,757 km
standard gauge: 2,757 km km 1.435-m gauge (1,991 km electrified; 1,800 km double track) (1994)

Highways:
total: 104,831 km
paved: 92,251 km (2,118 km of expressway)
unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 12,580 km (1992)

Inland waterways: 6,340 km, of which 35% is usable by craft of 1,000 metric ton capacity or larger

Pipelines: crude oil 418 km; petroleum products 965 km; natural gas 10,230 km

Ports: Amsterdam, Delfzijl, Dordrecht, Eemshaven, Groningen, Haarlem, Ijmuiden, Maastricht, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Utrecht

Merchant marine:
total: 343 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,629,578 GRT/3,337,307 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 195, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 3, container 33, liquefied gas tanker 12, livestock carrier 1, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 37, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 18, roll-on/roll-off cargo 14, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 2
note: many Dutch-owned ships are also registered on the Netherlands Antilles register

Airports:
total: 29
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 3
with paved runways under 914 m: 8
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 3

Communications

Telephone system: 9,418,000 telephones; highly developed, well maintained, and integrated; extensive redundant system of multiconductor cables, supplemented by microwave radio relay links
local: nationwide mobile phone system
intercity: microwave radio relay
international: 5 submarine cables; 3 INTELSAT (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean) and 1 EUTELSAT earth station

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 3 (relays 3), FM 12 (repeaters 39), shortwave 0
radios: NA

Television:
broadcast stations: 8 (repeaters 7)
televisions: NA

Defense Forces

Branches: Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Constabulary

Manpower availability: males age 15-49 4,177,555; males fit for military service 3,656,529; males reach military age (20) annually 94,771 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $7.1 billion, 2.2% of GDP (1994)