Country: Korea, North - Geography Total area: 120,540 km2; land area: 120,410 km2 Comparative area: slightly smaller than Mississippi Land boundaries: 1,671 km total; China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, USSR 17 km Coastline: 2,495 km Maritime claims: Extended economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm; Military boundary line: 50 nm (all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned) Disputes: short section of boundary with China is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea 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 Natural resources: coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower Land use: 18% arable land; 1% permanent crops; NEGL% meadows and pastures; 74% forest and woodland; 7% other; includes 9% irrigated Environment: mountainous interior is isolated, nearly inaccessible, and sparsely populated; late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding Note: strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and USSR - People Population: 21,292,649 (July 1990), growth rate 1.7% (1990) Birth rate: 22 births/1,000 population (1990) Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1990) Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990) Infant mortality rate: 27 deaths/1,000 live births (1990) Life expectancy at birth: 69 years male, 75 years female (1990) Total fertility rate: 2.1 children born/woman (1990) Nationality: noun--Korean(s); adjective--Korean Ethnic divisions: racially homogeneous Religion: Buddhism and Confucianism; religious activities now almost nonexistent Language: Korean Literacy: 95% (est.) Labor force: 9,615,000; 36% agricultural, 64% nonagricultural; shortage of skilled and unskilled labor (mid-1987 est.) Organized labor: 1,600,000 members; single-trade union system coordinated by the General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea under the Central Committee - Government Long-form name: Democratic People's Republic of Korea; abbreviated DPRK Type: Communist state; one-man rule Capital: P'yongyang Administrative divisions: 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 3 special cities* (jikhalsi, singular and plural); Chagang-do, Hamgyong-namdo, Hamgyong-bukto, Hwanghae-namdo, Hwanghae-bukto, Kaesong-si*, Kangwon-do, Namp'o-si*, P'yongan-bukto, P'yongan-namdo, P'yongyang-si*, Yanggang-do Independence: 9 September 1948 Constitution: adopted 1948, revised 27 December 1972 Legal system: based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction National holiday: Independence Day, 9 September (1948) Executive branch: president, two vice presidents, premier, nine vice premiers, State Administration Council (cabinet) Legislative branch: unicameral Supreme People's Assembly (Choe Ko In Min Hoe Ui) Judicial branch: Central Court Leaders: Chief of State--President KIM Il-song (since 28 December 1972); Designated Successor KIM Chong-Il (son of President, born 16 February 1942); Head of Government--Premier YON Hyong-muk (since NA December 1988) Political parties and leaders: only party--Korean Workers' Party (KWP); Kim Il-song, General Secretary, and his son, Kim Chong-Il, Secretary, Central Committee Suffrage: universal at age 17 Elections: President--last held 29 December 1986 (next to be held December 1990); results--President Kim Il Song was reelected without opposition; Supreme People's Assembly--last held on 2 November 1986 (next to be held November 1990, but the constitutional provision for elections every four years is not always followed); results--KWP is the only party; seats--(655 total) KWP 655; the KWP approves a single list of candidates who are elected without opposition Communists: KWP claims membership of about 2 million, or about one-tenth of population Member of: ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, IMO, IPU, ITU, NAM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTO, UNIDO, WMO; official observer status at UN Diplomatic representation: none Flag: 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: More than 90% of this command economy is socialized; agricultural land is collectivized; and state-owned industry produces 95% of manufactured goods. State control of economic affairs is unusually tight even for a Communist country because of the small size and homogeneity of the society and the strict one-man rule of Kim. Economic growth during the period 1984-89 has averaged approximately 3%. Abundant natural resources and hydropower form the basis of industrial development. Output of the extractive industries includes coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals. Manufacturing emphasis is centered on heavy industry, with light industry lagging far behind. The use of high-yielding seed varieties, expansion of irrigation, and the heavy use of fertilizers have enabled North Korea to become largely self-sufficient in food production. North Korea, however, is far behind South Korea in economic development and living standards. GNP: $28 billion, per capita $1,240; real growth rate 3% (1989) Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA% Unemployment rate: officially none Budget: revenues $15.6 billion; expenditures $15.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1989) Exports: $2.4 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--minerals, metallurgical products, agricultural products, manufactures; partners--USSR, China, Japan, FRG, Hong Kong, Singapore Imports: $3.1 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--petroleum, machinery and equipment, coking coal, grain; partners--USSR, Japan, China, FRG, Hong Kong, Singapore External debt: $2.5 billion hard currency (1989) Industrial production: growth rate NA% Electricity: 6,440,000 kW capacity; 40,250 million kWh produced, 1,740 kWh per capita (1989) Industries: machine building, military products, electric power, chemicals, mining, metallurgy, textiles, food processing Agriculture: accounts for about 25% of GNP and 36% of work force; principal crops--rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; livestock and livestock products--cattle, hogs, pork, eggs; not self-sufficient in grain; fish catch estimated at 1.7 million metric tons in 1987 Aid: Communist countries (1970-88), $1.3 billion Currency: North Korean won (plural--won); 1 North Korean won (Wn) = 100 chon Exchange rates: North Korean won (Wn) per US$1--2.3 (December 1989), 2.13 (December 1988), 0.94 (March 1987), NA (1986), NA (1985) Fiscal year: calendar year - Communications Railroads: 4,535 km total operating in 1980; 3,870 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 665 km 0.762-meter narrow gauge, 159 km double track; 3,175 km electrified; government owned Highways: about 20,280 km (1980); 98.5% gravel, crushed stone, or earth surface; 1.5% concrete or bituminous Inland waterways: 2,253 km; mostly navigable by small craft only Pipelines: crude oil, 37 km Ports: Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam, Namp'o, Wonsan, Songnim, Najin Merchant marine: 65 ships (1,000 GRT and over) totaling 437,103 GRT/663,835 DWT; includes 1 passenger, 1 short-sea passenger, 1 passenger-cargo, 56 cargo, 2 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 3 bulk, 1 combination bulk Airports: 50 total, 50 usable; about 30 with permanent-surface runways; fewer than 5 with runways over 3,659 m; 20 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 30 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: stations--18 AM, no FM, 11 TV; 200,000 TV sets; 3,500,000 radio receivers; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station - Defense Forces Branches: Ministry of People's Armed Forces (consists of the army, navy, and air force) Military manpower: males 15-49, 6,054,774; 3,699,088 fit for military service; 223,087 reach military age (18) annually Defense expenditures: 22% of GNP (1987)