2 the netherlands world fact book
netherlands world fact book designed by emily pack
history 6 geography 30 politics 34 people 42 government 46 culture 56 economy 58 communication 66 transportation 68 military 70 transnational 72 bibliography 74 2 the netherlands world fact book
table of contents
the netherlands The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, these Provinces became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies located all around the world. After a 20–year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in the year of 1815. In 1830, Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999.
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history
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Under Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and king of Spain, the region was part of the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands, which included most of present–day Belgium, Luxembourg, and some land of France and Germany. 1568 saw the start of the Eighty Years’ War between the provinces and Spain. In 1579, the northern half of the Seventeen Provinces formed the Union of Utrecht, a treaty in which they promised to support each other in their defense against the Spanish army.
The Union of Utrecht is seen as the foundation of the modern day Netherlands. In 1581 the northern provinces adopted the Oath of Abjuration, the declaration of independence in which the provinces officially deposed Philip II. Philip II the son of Charles V, was not prepared to let them go so easily and instead war continued until 1648 when Spain under King Philip IV finally recognized Dutch independence in the Treaty of Münster.
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dutch republic Since their independence from Phillip II in 1581 the provinces formed the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. The republic was a confederation of the provinces Holland, Zeeland, Groningen, Friesland, Utrecht, Overijssel and Gelre. All these provinces were autonomous and had their own government, the “States of the Province”. The States–General, the confederal government, were seated in The Hague and consisted of representatives from each of the seven provinces. The very thinly populated region of Drenthe, mainly consisting of poor peatland, was part of the Republic too, although Drenthe was not considered one of the provinces. Drenthe had its own States but the landdrost of Drenthe was appointed by the States–General. The Republic occupied a number of so–called Generality Lands (Generaliteitslanden in Dutch). These territories were governed by the States–General, so they did not have a government of their own and they did not have representatives in the States–General. Most of these territories were occupied during the Eighty Years’ War. They were mainly Roman Catholic and they were used as a buffer zone between the Republic and the Southern Netherlands.
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dutch golden age The Dutch grew to become one of the major seafaring and economic powers of the 17th century during the period of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. In the so– called Dutch Golden Age, colonies and trading posts were established all over the globe. Many economic historians regard the Netherlands as the first thoroughly capitalist country in the world. In early modern Europe it featured the wealthiest trading city (Amsterdam) and the first full–time stock exchange. The inventiveness of the traders led to insurance and retirement funds as well as such less benign phenomena as the boom–bust cycle, the world’s first asset–inflation bubble, the tulip mania of 1636– 1637, and according to Murray Sayle, the world’s first bear raider – Isaac le Maire, who forced prices down by dumping stock and then buying it back at a discount. The republic went into a state of general decline in the later 18th century, with economic competition from England and long standing rivalries between the two main factions in Dutch society, the Staatsgezinden (Republicans) and the Prinsgezinden (Royalists or Orangists) as main factors.
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french influence On 19 January 1795, a day after stadtholder William V of Orange fled to England, the Batavian Republic (Bataafse Republiek in Dutch) was proclaimed. The proclamation of the Batavian Republic introduced the concept of the unitary state in the Netherlands. From 1795 to 1806, the Batavian Republic designated the Netherlands as a republic modeled after the French Republic.
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kingdom of holland
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(Dutch: Koninkrijk Holland, French: Royaume de Hollande) was set up by Napoleon Bonaparte as a puppet kingdom for his third brother, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, in order to control the Netherlands more effectively. The name of the leading province, Holland, was now taken for the whole country. The kingdom of Holland covered the area of present day Netherlands, with the exception of Limburg, and parts of Zeeland, which were French territory. In 1807 Prussian East Frisia and Jever were added to the kingdom. In 1809
however, after an English invasion, Holland had to give over all territories south of the river Rhine to France. King Louis Napoleon did not meet Napoleon’s expectations. He tried to serve Dutch interests instead of his brother’s and the King had to abdicate on 1 July 1810.
the Kingdom of Holland. The Netherlands then became part of the French Empire. From 1810 to 1813, when Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated in the battle of Leipzig, the Netherlands were part of the French Empire.
Napoleon Louis reigned as Louis II for just ten days as Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte ignored his young nephew’s accession to the throne. The Emperor sent in an army to invade the country and dissolved
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kingdom of the netherlands In 1795 the last stadtholder William V of Orange fled to England. His son returned to the Netherlands in 1813 to become William I of the Netherlands, Sovereign Prince of the Netherlands. On 16 March 1815 the Sovereign Prince became King of the Netherlands. In 1815 the Congress of Vienna formed the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, by expanding the Netherlands with Belgium in order to create a country on the northern border of France. In addition, William became hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg. The Congress of Vienna gave Luxembourg to William personally in exchange for his German possessions, Nassau–Dillenburg, Siegen, Hadamar and Diez. Belgium rebelled and gained independence in 1830, while the personal union between Luxembourg and the Netherlands was severed in 1890, when King William III of the Netherlands died with no surviving heirs. Ascendancy laws prevented his daughter Queen Wilhelmina from becoming the next Grand Duchess. Therefore the throne of Luxembourg passed over from the House of Orange–Nassau to the House of Nassau– Weilburg, another branch of the House of Nassau.
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dutch colonies The largest Dutch settlement abroad was the Cape Colony. It was established by Jan van Riebeeck on behalf of the Dutch East India Company at Capetown in 1652. The Prince of Orange acquiesced to British occupation and control of the Cape Colony in 1788. The Netherlands also possessed several other colonies, but Dutch settlement in these lands was limited. Most notable were the vast Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) and Suriname (the latter was traded with the British for New Amsterdam, now known as New York). These ‘colonies’ were first administered by the Dutch East India Company and the Dutch West India Company, both collective private enterprises. Three centuries later these companies got into financial trouble and the territories in which they operated were taken over by the Dutch government (in 1815 and 1791 respectively). Only then did they become official colonies.
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industrialization During the 19th century, the Netherlands was slow to industrialize compared to neighboring countries, mainly due to the great complexity involved in the modernizing of the infrastructure consisting largely of waterways and the great reliance its industry had on wind power.
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world war I Many historians do not recognise the Dutch involvement during World War I. However, recently historians started to change their opinion on the role of the Dutch. Although the Netherlands remained neutral during the war, it was heavily involved in the war. Von Schlieffen had originally planned to invade the Netherlands while advancing into France. This was changed by Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. Later during the war Dutch neutrality would prove essential to German survival. However, the Dutch were able to remain neutral using their diplomacy and their ability to trade.
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world war II
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The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I and intended to do so in World War II. However, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940 in the Western European campaign of the Second World War. The country was quickly overrun and the army main force surrendered on May 14 after the bombing of Rotterdam, although a Dutch and French allied force held the province of Zeeland for a short time after the Dutch surrender. The Kingdom continued the war from the colonial empire; the government in exile resided in London.
During the occupation over 100,000 Dutch Jews were rounded up to be transported to Nazi concentration camps in Germany, Poland and Czechoslovakia. By the time these camps were liberated, only 876 Dutch Jews survived. Dutch workers were conscripted for forced labour in German factories, civilians were killed in reprisal for attacks on German soldiers, and the countryside was plundered for food for German soldiers in the Netherlands and for shipment to Germany. Although there are many stories of Dutch people
risking their lives by hiding Jews from the Germans, like in the diary of Anne Frank, there were also Dutch people who collaborated with Nazi occupiers in hunting down and arresting hiding Jews, and some joined the Waffen–SS to form the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Netherlands, fighting on the Eastern Front with Nazi occupiers in hunting down and arresting hiding Jews, and some joined the Waffen–SS to form the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Netherlands, fighting on the Eastern Front.
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world war II The government–in–exile lost control of its major colonial stronghold, the Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia), to Japanese forces in March 1942. “American–British–Dutch–Australian” (ABDA) forces fought, but were overwhelmed. During the occupation, the Japanese interned Dutch civilians and used both them and Indonesian civilians as forced labour, both in the Netherlands East Indies and in neighboring countries. This included forcing women to work as “comfort women” (sex slaves) for Japanese personnel. Some military personnel escaped to Australia and other Allied countries from where they carried on the fight against Japan. After a first liberation attempt by the Allied 21st Army Group stalled, much of the northern Netherlands was subject to the Dutch famine of 1944, caused by the disrupted transportation system, caused by German destruction of dikes to slow allied advances, and German confiscation of much food and livestock and above that all a very severe winter made the “Hunger Winter” of 1944–1945 one in which malnutrition and starvation were rife among the Dutch population. German forces held out until the surrender of May 5, 1945, in Wageningen at Hotel De Wereld.
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after the war After the war, the Dutch economy prospered by leaving behind an era of neutrality and gaining closer ties with neighboring states. The Netherlands became a member of the Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg). Furthermore, the Netherlands was among the twelve founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and among the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community, which would later evolve, via the EEC (Common Market), into the European Union.
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Location: Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between Belgium and Germany
Area – comparative: slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey
Geographic coordinates: 52 30 N, 5 45 E
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Map references: Europe Area:
total: 41,526 sq km land: 33,883 sq km water: 7,643 sq km
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Climate: temperate; marine; cool summers and Terrain: mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); some hills in southeast
geography Elevation extremes: lowest point: Zuidplaspolder – 7 m highest point: Vaalserberg 322 m
Freshwater withdrawal: total: 8.86 cu km/yr (6%/60%/34%) per capita: 544 cu m/yr
Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, peat, limestone, salt, sand and gravel, arable land
Natural hazards: flooding
Land use: arable land: 21.96% permanent crops: 0.77% other: 77.27% irrigated land: 5,650 sq km
Environment – current issues: water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates; air pollution from vehicles; acid rain
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geography Environment – international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution–Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution– Sulfur 85, Air Pollution–Sulfur 94, Air Pollution–Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic–Environmental Protocol, Antarctic–Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change–Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
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The Netherlands has been a constitutional monarchy since 1815 and a parliamentary democracy since 1848; before that it had been a republic from 1581 to 1806 and a kingdom between 1806 and 1810 (it was part of France between 1810 and 1813). The Netherlands is described as a consociational state. Dutch politics and governance are characterized by an effort to achieve broad consensus on important issues, within both the political community and society as a whole.
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In 2007, The Economist ranked The Netherlands as the third most democratic country in the world. The head of state is the monarch, at present Queen Beatrix. Constitutionally the monarch still has considerable powers, but in practice it has become a ceremonial function. The monarch can exert most influence during the formation of a new cabinet, where he/she serves as neutral arbiter between the political parties. In practice the executive power is formed by de ministerraad Dutch cabinet. Because
politics of the multi–party system no party has ever held a majority in parliament since the 19th century, therefore coalition cabinets have to be formed. The cabinet consists usually of around thirteen to sixteen ministers of which between one and three ministers without portfolio, and a varying number of state secretaries. The head of government is the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, who is often, but not always, the leader of the largest party in the coalition. In practice the Prime Minister has been the leader of the largest coalition party since 1973.
He is a primus inter pares, meaning he has no explicit powers that go beyond those of the other ministers. The cabinet is responsible to the bicameral parliament, the States–General which also has legislative powers. The 150 members of the Second Chamber, the Lower House, are elected in direct elections, which are held every four years or after the fall of the cabinet (by example: when one of the chambers carries a motion of
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politics no–confidence, the cabinet offers her resignation to the monarch). The provincial assemblies are directly elected every four years as well. The members of the provincial assemblies elect the 75 members of the First Chamber, the upper house, which has less legislative powers, as it can merely reject laws, not propose or amend them. Both trade unions and employers organizations are consulted beforehand in policy making in the financial, economic and social areas. They meet regularly with government in the Social– Economic Council. This body advises government and its advice cannot be put aside easily. While historically the Dutch foreign policy was characterized by neutrality, since the Second World War the Netherlands became a member of a large number of international organizations, most prominently the UN, NATO and the EU. The Dutch economy is very open and relies on international trade. The Netherlands has a long tradition of social tolerance. In the 18th century, while the Dutch Reformed Church was the state religion, Catholicism and Judaism were tolerated. In the late 19th century this Dutch tradition of religious tolerance transformed into a system of pillarisation, in which religious groups coexisted separately and only interacted at the level of government. This tradition of tolerance is linked to the Dutch policies on recreational drugs, prostitution, LGBT rights, euthanasia, and abortion which are among the most liberal in the world. The Binnenhof is the centre of Dutch politics.
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politics Since suffrage became universal in 1919 the Dutch political system has been dominated by three families of political parties: the strongest family were the Christian democrats currently represented by the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), second were the social democrats, of which the Labour Party (PvdA) is currently the largest party and third were the liberals of which the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) is the main representative. These cooperated in coalition cabinets in which the Christian democrats had always been partner: so either a centre left coalition of the Christian democrats and social democrats or a centre right coalition of Christian democrats and liberals. In the 1970s the party system became more volatile: the Christian democratic parties lost seats, while new parties, like the radical democrat and progressive liberal D66, became successful. In the 1994 election the CDA lost its dominant position. A “purple” cabinet was formed by the VVD, D66 and PvdA. In 2002 elections this cabinet lost its majority, due to the rise of LPF, a new political party around the flamboyant populist Pim Fortuyn, who was shot to death a week before the elections took place. The elections also saw increased support for the CDA. A short lived cabinet was formed by CDA, VVD and LPF, led by the leader of the Christian democrats, Jan Peter Balkenende. After the 2003 elections in which the LPF lost almost all its seats, a cabinet was formed by the CDA, the VVD and D66. The cabinet initiated an ambitious program of reforming the welfare state, the health care system and immigration policies. In June 2006 the cabinet fell, as D66 voted in favour of a motion of no confidence against minister of immigration and integration
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politics Rita Verdonk in the aftermath of the upheaval about the asylum procedure of Ayaan Hirsi Ali instigated by the Dutch immigration minister Verdonk. A care taker cabinet was formed by CDA and VVD, and the general elections were held on 22 November 2006. In these elections the Christian Democratic Appeal remained the largest party and the Socialist Party made the largest gains. The formation of a new cabinet started two days after the elections. Initial investigations toward a CDA–SP–PvdA coalition failed, after which a coalition of CDA, PvdA and Christian Union was formed.
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people people
Population: 16,645,313 Median age: total: 40 years male: 39.2 years female: 40.9 years Population growth rate: 0.436% Birth rate: 10.53 births/1,000 population Death rate: 8.71 deaths/1,000 population Net migration rate: 2.55 migrant(s)/1,000 population Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15–64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female Infant mortality rate: total: 4.81 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.34 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.25 deaths/1,000 live births Life expectancy at birth: total population: 79.25 years male: 76.66 years female: 81.98 years Total fertility rate: 1.66 children born/woman
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people
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HIV/AIDS: adult prevalence rate: 0.2% people living with: 19,000 deaths: less than 100 Nationality: noun: Dutchman, Dutchwoman adjective: Dutch
Languages: Dutch (official), Frisian (official) Literacy: definition: 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99%
Ethnic groups: Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non–Western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese, and Indonesians)
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Country name: conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands conventional short form: Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland Government type: constitutional monarchy Capital: name: Amsterdam geographic coordinates: 52 23 N, 4 54 E Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October The Hague (seat of government) Administrative divisions: 12 provinces; Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland (Fryslan), Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord Brabant (North Brabant), Noord–Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid–Holland Dependent areas: Aruba, Netherlands Antilles Independence: 23 January 1579 (the northern provinces of the Low Countries conclude the Union of Utrecht breaking with Spain; on 26 July 1581 they formally declared their independence with an Act of Abjuration; however, it was not until 30 January 1648 and the Peace of Westphalia that Spain recognized this independence) National holiday: Queen’s Day (Birthday of Queen–Mother JULIANA and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX), 30 April (1909 and 1980)
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gov
vernment
government Constitution: adopted 1815; amended many times, most recently in 2002 Legal system: based on civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch: chief of state: Queen BEATRIX (since 30 April 1980); Heir Apparent WILLEM–ALEXANDER (born 27 April 1967), son of the monarch head of government: Prime Minister Jan Peter BALKENENDE (since 22 July 2002); Deputy Prime Ministers Wouter BOS (since 22 February 2007) and Andre ROUVOET (since 22 February 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is appointed prime minister by the monarch; deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch note: there is a Council of State composed of the monarch, heir apparent, and councilors that provides consultations to the cabinet on legislative and administrative policy
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government Legislative branch: bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country’s 12 provincial councils to serve four–year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four–year terms)
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Elections: First Chamber – last held 29 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2011); Second Chamber – last held 22 November 2006 (next to be held by early 2011) Election results: First Chamber – percent of vote by party – NA%; seats by party – CDA 21, PvdA 14, VVD 14, Socialist Party 11, Christian Union 4, Green Left Party 4, D66 2, other 5;
Second Chamber – percent of vote by party – CDA 26.5%, PvdA 21.2%, Socialist Party 16.6%, VVD 14.6%, Party for Freedom 5.9%, Green Party 4.6%, Christian Union 4.0%, other 6.6%; seats by party – CDA 41, PvdA 33, Socialist Party 25, VVD 22, Party for Freedom 9, Green Party 7, Christian Union 6, other 7 Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated for life by the monarch)
Appeal or CDA [Jan Peter BALKENENDE]; Christian Union Party [Andre ROUVOET]; Democrats 66 or D66 [Alexander PECHTOLD]; Green Left Party [Femke HALSEMA]; Labor Party or PvdA [Wouter BOS]; Party for Freedom or PVV [Geert WILDERS]; Party for the Animals or PvdD [Marianne THIEME]; People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (Liberal) or VVD [Mark RUTTE]; Reformed Political Party of SGP [Bas VAN DER VLIES]; Socialist Party [Jan MARIJNISSEN]; plus a few minor parties
Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic
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government Political pressure groups and leaders: Christian Trade Union Federation or CNV [Rene PAAS]; Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers or VNO–NCW [Bernard WIENTJES]; Federation for Small and Medium–sized businesses or MKB [Loek HERMANS]; Netherlands Trade Union Federation or FNV [Agnes JONGERIUS]; Social Economic Council or SER [ Alexander RINNOOY Kan]; Trade Union Federation of Middle and High Personnel or MHP [Ad VERHOEVEN] International organization participation: ADB (non regional members), AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CBSS (observer), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G–10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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government Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Christiaan Mark Johan KROENER chancery: 4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 244–5300, [1] 877–388–2443
FAX: [1] (202) 362–3430
Consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d’Affaires Michael GALLAGHER
embassy: Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague
mailing address: PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715
telephone: [31] (70) 310–2209
FAX: [31] (70) 361–4688
Consulate(s) general: Amsterdam Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue; similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer; one of the oldest flags in constant use, originating with WILLIAM I, Prince of Orange, in the latter half of the 16th century
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culture
The Netherlands has had many well–known painters. The 17th century, when the Dutch republic was prosperous, was the age of the “Dutch Masters”, such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Johannes Vermeer, Jan Steen, Jacob van Ruysdael and many others. Famous Dutch painters of the 19th and 20th century were Vincent van Gogh and Piet Mondriaan. M. C. Escher is a well–known graphics artist. Willem de Kooning was born and trained in Rotterdam, although he is considered to have reached acclaim as an American artist. Han van Meegeren was an infamous Dutch art forger. The Netherlands is the country of philosophers Erasmus of Rotterdam and Spinoza. All of Descartes’ major work was done in the Netherlands. The Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens (1629– 1695) discovered Saturn’s moon Titan and invented the pendulum clock. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was the first to observe and describe single–celled organisms with a microscope. In the Dutch Golden Age, literature flourished as well, with Joost van den Vondel and P.C. Hooft as the two most famous writers. In the 19th century, Multatuli wrote about the bad treatment of the natives in Dutch colonies. Important 20th century authors include Harry Mulisch, Jan Wolkers, Simon Vestdijk, Cees Nooteboom, Gerard (van het) Reve and Willem Frederik Hermans. Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl was published after she died in The Holocaust and translated from Dutch to all major languages. Replicas of Dutch buildings can be found in Huis ten Bosch, Nagasaki, Japan. A similar Holland Village is being built in Shenyang, China. Windmills, tulips, wooden shoes, cheese and Delftware pottery are among the items associated with the Netherlands.
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economy The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy, which depends heavily on foreign trade. The economy is noted for stable industrial relations, moderate unemployment and inflation, a sizable current account surplus, and an important role as a European transportation hub. Industrial activity is predominantly in food processing, chemicals, petroleum refining, and electrical machinery. A highly mechanized agricultural sector employs no more than 3% of the labor force but provides large surpluses for the food–processing industry and for
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exports. The Netherlands, along with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency on 1 January 2002. The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment and is one of the five largest investors in the US. The economy experienced a slowdown in 2005 but in 2006 recovered to the fastest pace in six years on the back of increased exports and strong investment. The pace of job growth reached 10–year highs in 2007.Â
GDP (purchasing power parity): $638.9 billion
Labor force: 7.5 million
GDP (official exchange rate): $754.9 billion
Unemployment rate: 4.1%
GDP – real growth rate: 3.5%
Population below poverty line: 10.5%
GDP – per capita (PPP): $38,600
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 22.9%
GDP – composition by sector: agriculture: 2.2% industry: 24% services: 73.8%
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economy Distribution of family income: 30.9 Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.6% Investment (gross fixed): 19.9% of GDP Budget: revenues: $302.8 billion expenditures: $352.3 billion Public debt: 47.7% of GDP Agriculture – products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, fruits, vegetables; livestock Industries: agroindustries, metal and engineering products, electrical machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum, construction, microelectronics, fishing Industrial production growth rate: 2% Electricity – production: 94.34 billion kWh Electricity – production by source: fossil fuel: 89.9% hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 4.3% other: 5.7%
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economy Electricity: consumption: 108.2 billion kWh exports: 5.398 billion kWh imports: 23.69 billion kWh Oil – production: 76,000 bbl/day consumption: 1.011 million bbl/day exports: 1.546 million bbl/day imports: 2.465 million bbl/day proved reserves: 106 million bbl Natural gas – production: 77.3 billion cu m consumption: 47.8 billion cu m exports: 50.21 billion cu m imports: 22.08 billion cu m proved reserves: 1.684 trillion cu m Current account balance: $59.28 billion Exports: $465.3 billion f.o.b. Exports – commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; foodstuffs Exports – partners: Germany 25.5%, Belgium 14%, UK 8.9%, France 8.6%, Italy 5.1%, US 4.5% Imports: $402.4 billion f.o.b.
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economy Imports – commodities: machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs, clothing Imports – partners: Germany 17.1%, Belgium 9.4%, China 9.4%, US 7.8%, UK 5.9%, Russia 5.1%, France 4.5% Economic aid – donor: ODA, $5.452 billion Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $23.9 billion Debt – external: $2.277 trillion Stock of direct foreign investment: at home: $450.9 billion abroad: $652.3 billion Market value of publicly traded shares: $924.4 billion Currency: euro Currency code: EUR Exchange rates: euros per US dollar – 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003) Fiscal year: calendar year
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communicatio
on
Telephones: main lines in use: 7.6 million mobile cellular: 15.834 million Telephone system: general assessment: highly developed and well maintained
domestic: extensive fixed–line fiber–optic network; cellular telephone system is one of the largest in Europe with 5 major network operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM)
international: country code – 31; submarine cables provide links to the US and Europe; satellite earth stations – 5 (3 Intelsat – 1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 246, shortwave 3 Radios: 15.3 million Television broadcast stations: 21 (plus 26 repeaters) Televisions: 8.1 million Internet country code: .nl Internet hosts: 11.17 million Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 52 Internet users: 14.544 million
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transportat Airports: 27: with paved runways: total: 20 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 with unpaved runways: total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4
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Heliports: 1 Pipelines: condensate 81 km; gas 7,394 km; oil 578 km; refined products 716 km Railways: 2,811 km standard gauge: 2,811 km 1.435–m gauge (2,064 km electrified) Roadways: 134,000 km (includes 3,270 km of expressways)
tion Waterways: 6,183 km Merchant marine: total: 566 ships 5,210,664 GRT/5,217,874 by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 346, carrier 19, chemical tanker 39, container 63, liquefied gas 13, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 16, petroleum tanker 12, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 4 foreign–owned: 172 (Belgium 2, Denmark 19, Finland 14, France 1, Germany 70, Ireland 9,South Korea 1, Norway 9, Sweden 27, UK 7, US 13) registered in other countries: 220 (Antigua
and Barbuda 19, Australia 2, Austria 2, Bahamas 24, Canada 1, Cyprus 23, Gibraltar 11, Isle of Man 1, Liberia 28, Luxembourg 1, Malta 3, Marshall Islands 5, Netherlands Antilles 53, Norway 1, Panama 14, Paraguay 1, Philippines 22, Portugal 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 5, UK 2, US 1, unknown 1) Ports and terminals: Amsterdam, IJmuiden, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Vlissingen
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military military
Military branches: Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force (Koninklijke Luchtmacht, KLu), Royal Military Police (2008) Military service age and obligation: 20 years of age for an all– volunteer force Manpower available for military service: males age 16–49: 3,950,825 females age 16–49: 3,850,800 Manpower fit for military service: males age 16–49: 3,233,773 females age 16–49: 3,150,790 Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 16–49: 105,735 females age 16–49: 100,747 Military expenditures – percent of GDP: 1.6%
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ransnational Disputes – international: none Illicit drugs: major European producer of synthetic drugs, including ecstasy, and cannabis cultivator; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe; major source of US–bound ecstasy; large financial sector vulnerable to money laundering; significant consumer of ecstasy.
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citations Chiel Koolhaas 3
Shane Rounce 37
Javier M 4
Roman Boed 38
Rudy Van Der Veen 11, 75
Moyan Brenn 41
Vincent Versluis 13
Tim Gouw 42
smlp.co.uk 14
Stijn Te Strake 48
Canadian Pacific 19
Tom Jutte 53
Tommy Ferraz 21
Owen Williams 54
Noid Intitute 27
Rik Van Der Kroon 58
Jace Grandinettii 28
Jurriaan Snikkers 61
Tpsdave 30
Echo Grid 66
Peter Heeling 33
Netherlands 7th Army 70
Lily Dent 34, 44, 46, 56, 62, 65
Mitchel Lensink 72
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2 the netherlands world fact book