|
Introduction |
Korea,
South |
|
Background:
|
After World War II, a
republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while
a Communist-style government was installed in the north. The Korean
War (1950-53) had US and other UN forces intervene to defend South
Korea from North Korean attacks supported by the Chinese. An armistice
was signed in 1953 splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone
at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid
economic growth, with per capita income far outstripping the level of
North Korea. In 1997, the nation suffered a severe financial crisis
from which it continues to make a solid recovery. South Korea has also
maintained its commitment to democratize its political processes. In
June 2000, a historic first south-north summit took place between the
south's President KIM Dae-jung and the north's leader KIM Chong-il. In
December 2000, President KIM Dae-jung won the Noble Peace Prize for
his lifelong commitment to democracy and human rights in Asia. He is
the first Korean to win a Nobel Prize. |
|
Location:
|
Eastern Asia, southern
half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow
Sea |
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
37 00 N, 127 30 E |
|
Map references:
|
Asia |
|
Area:
|
total: 98,480 sq
km
land: 98,190 sq km
water: 290 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly larger than
Indiana |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 238 km
border countries: North Korea 238 km |
|
Coastline:
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2,413 km |
|
Maritime claims:
|
contiguous zone:
24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM; between 3 NM and 12 NM in the Korea
Strait
continental shelf: not specified
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
|
Climate:
|
temperate, with
rainfall heavier in summer than winter |
|
Terrain:
|
mostly hills and
mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south |
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point:
Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Halla-san 1,950 m |
|
Natural resources:
|
coal, tungsten,
graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential |
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 17%
permanent crops: 2%
other: 81% (1998 est.) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
11,590 sq km (1998
est.) |
|
Natural hazards:
|
occasional typhoons
bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in
southwest |
|
Environment - current issues:
|
air pollution in large
cities; acid rain; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and
industrial effluents; drift net fishing |
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Environment - international agreements:
|
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
|
Geography - note:
|
strategic location on
Korea Strait |
|
Population:
|
48.324 million (July
2002 est.) |
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years:
21.4% (male 5,488,808; female 4,875,379)
15-64 years: 71% (male 17,404,645; female 16,894,361)
65 years and over: 7.6% (male 1,434,873; female 2,225,934)
(2002 est.) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
0.85% (2002 est.) |
|
Birth rate:
|
14.55 births/1,000
population (2002 est.) |
|
Death rate:
|
6.02 deaths/1,000
population (2002 est.) |
|
Net migration rate:
|
0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2002 est.) |
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth: 1.11
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.13 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
7.58 deaths/1,000 live
births (2002 est.) |
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population:
74.88 years
female: 78.95 years (2002 est.)
male: 71.2 years |
|
Total fertility rate:
|
1.72 children
born/woman (2002 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
0.01% (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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3,800 (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
180 (1999 est.) |
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Nationality:
|
noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
homogeneous (except for
about 20,000 Chinese) |
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Religions:
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Christian 49%, Buddhist
47%, Confucianist 3%, Shamanist, Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly
Way), and other 1% |
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Languages:
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Korean, English widely
taught in junior high and high school |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 99.3%
female: 96.7% (1995 est.) |
|
Country name:
|
conventional long
form: Republic of Korea
conventional short form: South Korea
local short form: none
note: the South Koreans generally use the term "Han'guk" to
refer to their country
local long form: Taehan-min'guk
abbreviation: ROK |
|
Government type:
|
republic |
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Capital:
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Seoul |
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Administrative divisions:
|
9 provinces (do,
singular and plural) and 7 metropolitan cities* (gwangyoksi, singular
and plural); Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto, Cholla-namdo, Ch'ungch'ong-bukto,
Ch'ungch'ong-namdo, Inch'on-gwangyoksi*, Kangwon-do,
Kwangju-gwangyoksi*, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto, Kyongsang-namdo,
Pusan-gwangyoksi*, Soul-t'ukpyolsi*, Taegu-gwangyoksi*,
Taejon-gwangyoksi*, Ulsan-gwangyoksi* |
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Independence:
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15 August 1945 (from
Japan) |
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National holiday:
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Liberation Day, 15
August (1945) |
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Constitution:
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25 February 1988 |
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Legal system:
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combines elements of
continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and
Chinese classical thought |
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Suffrage:
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20 years of age;
universal |
|
Executive branch:
|
chief of state:
President KIM Dae-jung (since 25 February 1998)
head of government: Prime Minister YI Han-tong (since 23 May
2000)
cabinet: State Council appointed by the president on the prime
minister's recommendation
elections: president elected by popular vote for a single
five-year term; election last held 18 December 1997 (next to be held
19 December 2002); prime minister appointed by the president; deputy
prime ministers appointed by the president on the prime minister's
recommendation
election results: KIM Dae-jung elected president; percent of
vote - KIM Dae-jung (MDP) 40.3% (with ULD partnership), YI Hoe-chang
(GNP) 38.7%, YI In-che (NPP) 19.2% |
|
Legislative branch:
|
unicameral National
Assembly or Kukhoe (273 seats total - 227 elected by direct, popular
vote; members serve four-year terms); note - beginning in 2004, all
members will be directly elected; possible redistricting before 2004
may affect the number of seats in the National Assembly
elections: last held 13 April 2000 (next to be held NA April
2004)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by
party - GNP 133, MDP 115, ULD 17, other 8; note - the distribution of
seats as of January 2002 is: GNP 136, MDP 118, ULD 15, DPP 2,
independents 2 |
|
Judicial branch:
|
Supreme Court (justices
are appointed by the president with the consent of the National
Assembly) |
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Political parties and leaders:
|
Democratic People's
Party or DPP [CHO Sun, chairman]; Grand National Party or GNP [YI Hoe-chang,
president]; Millennium Democratic Party or MDP [leader NA]; United
Liberal Democrats or ULD [KIM Chong-p'il, honorary chairman, KIM Chong-ho,
acting president]
note: on 20 January 2000, the National Congress for New
Politics or NCNP was renamed the Millennium Democratic Party or MDP
|
|
Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
Federation of Korean
Industries; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Confederation of
Trade Unions; Korean National Council of Churches; Korean Traders
Association; Korean Veterans' Association; National Council of Labor
Unions; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of
Farmers' Associations; National Federation of Student Associations
|
|
International organization participation:
|
AfDB, APEC, ARF
(dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group,
BIS, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IEA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS
(observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTrO, ZC |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
chief of mission:
Ambassador YANG Song-chol
chancery: 2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago,
Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle
consulate(s): Tamuning (Guam)
FAX: [1] (202) 387-0205
telephone: [1] (202) 939-5600 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
chief of mission:
Ambassador Thomas C. HUBBARD
embassy: 82 Sejong-ro, Chongro-ku, Seoul 110-710
mailing address: American Embassy, Unit 15550, APO AP
96205-0001
telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114
FAX: [82] (2) 738-8845 |
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Flag description:
|
white with a red (top)
and blue yin-yang symbol in the center; there is a different black
trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of Changes) in each corner of
the white field |
|
Economy - overview:
|
As one of the Four
Tigers of East Asia, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of
growth. Three decades ago GDP per capita was comparable with levels in
the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is
seven times India's, 17 times North Korea's, and comparable to the
lesser economies of the European Union. This success through the late
1980s was achieved by a system of close government/business ties,
including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of
specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government
promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of
consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption.
The Asian financial crisis of 1997-99 exposed certain longstanding
weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high
debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined
financial sector. Growth plunged by 6.6% in 1998, then strongly
recovered to plus 10% in 1999 and 9% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3%
in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and
the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms have
stalled. |
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power parity
- $865 billion (2001 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
3.3% (2001 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity
- $18,000 (2001 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 5%
industry: 44%
services: 51% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
|
4% (2001 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 24.8% (1998 est.) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
|
31.6 (1993) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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4.3% (2001 est.) |
|
Labor force:
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22 million (2001) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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services 69%, industry
21.5%, agriculture 9.5% (2001) |
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Unemployment rate:
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3.9% (2001) |
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Budget:
|
revenues: $118.1
billion
expenditures: $95.7 billion, including capital expenditures of
$22.6 billion (2000) |
|
Industries:
|
electronics, automobile
production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel, textiles, clothing,
footwear, food processing |
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Industrial production growth rate:
|
1.8% (2001 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
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273.204 billion kWh
(2000) |
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Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel:
60.63%
hydro: 1.45%
other: 0.03% (2000)
nuclear: 37.89% |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
254.08 billion kWh
(2000) |
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Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2000) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh (2000) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice, root crops,
barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish
|
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Exports:
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$168.3 billion (f.o.b.,
2001) |
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Exports - commodities:
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electronic products,
machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, steel, ships; textiles,
clothing, footwear; fish |
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Exports - partners:
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US 21.8%, Japan 11.9%,
China 10.7%, Hong Kong 6.2%, Taiwan 4.7% (2000) |
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Imports:
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$152.3 billion (f.o.b.,
2001) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery, electronics
and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, textiles,
organic chemicals, grains |
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Imports - partners:
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Japan 19.8%, US 18.2%,
China 8%, Saudi Arabia 6%, Australia 3.7% (2000) |
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Debt - external:
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$120.5 billion (2001)
|
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Economic aid - recipient:
|
$NA |
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Currency:
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South Korean won (KRW)
|
|
Currency code:
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KRW |
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Exchange rates:
|
South Korean won per US
dollar - 1,317.01 (January 2002), 1,290.99 (2001), 1,130.96 (2000),
1,188.82 (1999), 1,401.44 (1998), 951.29 (1997) |
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Fiscal year:
|
calendar year |
|
Communications |
Korea, South |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
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24 million (2000) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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28 million (September
2000) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment:
excellent domestic and international services
domestic: NA
international: fiber-optic submarine cable to China; the
Russia-Korea-Japan submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 3
Intelsat (2 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific
Ocean region) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 104, FM 136,
shortwave 5 (2001) |
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Radios:
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47.5 million (2000)
|
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Television broadcast stations:
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121 (plus 850 repeater
stations and the eight-channel American Forces Korea Network) (1999)
|
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Televisions:
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15.9 million (1997)
|
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Internet country code:
|
.kr |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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11 (2000) |
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Internet users:
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22.23 million (2001)
|
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Transportation |
Korea, South |
|
Railways:
|
total: 3,124 km
standard gauge: 3,124 km 1.435-m gauge (661 km electrified)
(2000) |
|
Highways:
|
total: 87,534 km
paved: 65,388 km (including 1,996 km of expressways)
unpaved: 22,146 km (1999) |
|
Waterways:
|
1,609 km
note: restricted to small native craft |
|
Pipelines:
|
petroleum products 455
km |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Chinhae, Inch'on,
Kunsan, Masan, Mokp'o, P'ohang, Pusan, Tonghae-hang, Ulsan, Yosu |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total: 501 ships
(1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,679,171 GRT/9,172,403 DWT
ships by type: bulk 104, cargo 160, chemical tanker 47,
combination bulk 6, container 52, liquefied gas 16, multi-functional
large-load carrier 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 73, refrigerated
cargo 25, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea passenger 1, specialized
tanker 3, vehicle carrier 5, includes some foreign-owned ships
registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Bulgaria 1,
China 1, Greece 1, Japan 1, Malaysia 1, Norway 1, Panama 1, Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines 1, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.) |
|
Airports:
|
102 (2001) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 68
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 19
914 to 1,523 m: 11
under 914 m: 20 (2001)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 34
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 32 (2001) |
|
Heliports:
|
203 (2001) |
|
Military branches:
|
Army, Navy, Air Force,
Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (Coast Guard) |
|
Military manpower - military age:
|
18 years of age (2002
est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males age 15-49:
14,194,960 (2002 est.) |
|
Military manpower - fit for military service:
|
males age 15-49:
8,990,488 (2002 est.) |
|
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
|
males: 394,397
(2002 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$12.8 billion (FY00)
|
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
2.8% (FY00) |
|
Transnational Issues |
Korea, South |
|
Disputes - international:
|
Demarcation Line with
North Korea; Liancourt Rocks (Takeshima/Tokdo) disputed with Japan
|
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