oons during the early fall

Environment - current issues: localized air pollution attributable to
inadequate industrial controls; water pollution; inadequate supplies
of potable water

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the
Sea

Geography - note: strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and
Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated

@Korea:People

Population: 21,687,550 (July 2000 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 26% (male 2,843,250; female 2,705,206)
15-64 years: 68% (male 7,223,364; female 7,502,094)
65 years and over: 6% (male 448,242; female 965,394) (2000 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.35% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 20.43 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.46 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 24.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 70.74 years
male: 67.76 years
female: 73.86 years (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.3 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean

Ethnic groups: racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese
community and a few ethnic Japanese

Religions: traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and
syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent;
government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of
religious freedom

Languages: Korean

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write Korean
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1990 est.)

@Korea:Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea
local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk
local short form: none
note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to
their country
abbreviation: DPRK

Data code: KN

Government type: authoritarian socialist; one-man dictatorship

Capital: P'yongyang