Three Gorges Dam
EnergyThe world's largest hydropower station by installed capacity, at 22.5 GW, and the main flood-control structure on the Yangtze.
Yichang, Hubei
Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Greenland voted in favor of increased self-rule in November 2008 and acquired greater responsibility for internal affairs when the Act on Greenland Self-Government was signed into law in June 2009. …
The National Infrastructure Index maps the physical assets national life runs on — power stations and grids, water systems, ports, railways and airports, data networks, payment systems and launch sites. Each asset is placed in a Strategic Infrastructure capability group, so it can be read against the ratings in the National Capability index above.
Assets are chosen for how much of the economy and state depends on them and how hard they would be to replace. Each card records what the asset is, the category it belongs to, what it does and where it is.
Example assets. These twenty cards are modelled on China's most critical infrastructure and show on every nation page until each nation's own assets are mapped.
The world's largest hydropower station by installed capacity, at 22.5 GW, and the main flood-control structure on the Yangtze.
A 16 GW dam on the Jinsha River, built around sixteen 1 GW turbines, the largest single units in service.
A ±1,100 kV direct-current line carrying 12 GW more than 3,000 km from Xinjiang's power bases to the eastern grid.
China's first large commercial nuclear plant, in service since 1994, with much of its output sold to Hong Kong.
A canal carrying Yangtze basin water more than 1,400 km north from the Danjiangkou Reservoir to Beijing and Tianjin.
The 1,318 km trunk line between the two largest cities, opened in 2011 and one of the busiest high-speed routes in the world.
The world's busiest container port since 2010, including the automated Yangshan deep-water terminals.
The world's largest port by cargo tonnage, handling iron ore, crude oil and coal for the eastern industrial belt.
The capital's second international hub, opened in 2019 around one of the largest single terminal buildings in the world.
A 55 km bridge and undersea tunnel system linking the western and eastern shores of the Pearl River Delta, opened in 2018.
The 1,956 km line from Xining to Lhasa, crossing the Tanggula Pass at 5,072 m, the highest railway in the world.
One of eight national data centre hubs under the East Data, West Computing programme, hosting major cloud providers.
A 2,000 km quantum key distribution trunk line through Jinan and Hefei, completed in 2017 for secure government and bank links.
CIPS clears and settles cross-border payments in renminbi, launched in 2015 to extend the currency's international reach.
The coastal launch site for Long March 5 heavy-lift rockets, used for the Tiangong station modules and lunar and Mars missions.
China's first launch site, founded in 1958 in the Gobi Desert, and the base for every crewed Shenzhou mission.
The national satellite navigation system, providing global positioning and timing since 2020 from its Beijing control segment.
The world's largest known rare-earth deposit and the core of China's rare-earth mining and refining supply chain.
A weir and channel system built around 256 BC that still irrigates much of the Chengdu Plain's farmland.
China's leading maker of 3D NAND flash memory, central to the drive for a domestic semiconductor supply.
The National Development Index tracks the events that move a nation's capability — policy decisions, technological milestones, economic turns and external shocks — and places each one on the record with the date it happened and what followed from it. It is the narrative counterpart to the indices: where a rating says where Greenland stands, the index says how it arrived there.
Recent developments cover the current cycle, close enough that their consequences are still unfolding. Historical developments are the inflection points behind the present position — the decisions and events a reader needs in order to read the ratings above in context.
Circumpolar peoples migrating from what is now Canada first entered Greenland around 2500 BC. The Saqqaq culture then inhabited southern and western Greenland until about 800 BC, with most remains found around Disko Bay. This began at least 4,500 years of intermittent human habitation of the island.
The Independence I culture existed in northern Greenland, founding towns including Deltaterrasserne. It formed part of the wider Arctic small-tool tradition.
Norse settlers led by Erik the Red arrived in the 10th century. Greenland is the world's largest island and is about 81 per cent ice-capped.
Danish colonisation began in the 18th century with the arrival of the missionary Hans Egede in 1721.
The 1953 Danish constitution ended Greenland's colonial status and incorporated it fully into the Kingdom of Denmark.
Self-government was granted in 1979 and the law went into effect the following year, establishing Greenland's own parliament and government.
Having joined the EC together with Denmark in 1973, Greenland left in 1985 over a dispute centred on stringent fishing quotas — the only territory ever to do so at that time.
The Act on Greenland Self-Government, signed into law in June 2009, gave Greenland greater responsibility for internal affairs. Denmark continues to exercise control over foreign affairs, security and financial policy in consultation with the Self-Rule Government.
Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Greenland voted in favor of increased self-rule in November 2008 and acquired greater responsibility for internal affairs when the Act on Greenland Self-Government was signed into law in June 2009. Denmark, however, continues to exercise control over several policy areas on behalf of Greenland including foreign affairs, security, and financial policy in consultation with Greenland's Self-Rule Government.
none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland)
June 21 (longest day)
Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada
72 00 N, 40 00 W
North America
slightly more than three times the size of Texas
0 km
44,087 km
flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast
coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, diamonds, gold, platinum, niobium, tantalite, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas
NA
continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island
dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast; close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap
protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting
arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters
Capability-group ratings for Critical Technology are part of the GINC National Capability Framework rather than the country factbook. They are published in the National Capability index, and the per-capability detail lives on the capability pages.
Clinical research and life-science invention, drawn from the same series that drive the metric pages. Each card opens the full cross-country comparison.
15 (2013)
59,455 (2012)
36,000 (2009)
.gl
276.6 million kWh (2010 est.)
279 million kWh (2010 est.)
0 kWh (2012 est.)
0 kWh (2012 est.)
137,000 kW (2010 est.)
100% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2010 est.)
0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
0 bbl (1 January 2013 est.)
0 bbl/day (2010 est.)
3,897 bbl/day (2011 est.)
920 bbl/day (2010 est.)
5,164 bbl/day (2010 est.)
0 cu m (2011 est.)
0 cu m (2010 est.)
0 cu m (2011 est.)
0 cu m (2011 est.)
0 cu m (1 January 2013 est.)
611,100 Mt (2011 est.)
18,900 (2012)
15,645 (2012)
defense is the responsibility of Denmark
no regular military forces
57,728 (July 2014 est.)
0.02% (2014 est.)
14.53 births/1,000 population (2014 est.)
8.38 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.)
2.06 children born/woman (2014 est.)
-5.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2014 est.)
NUUK (capital) 16,000 (2011)
5.8 beds/1,000 population (2009)
9.2% (2007 est.)
1.67 physicians/1,000 population (2009)
NA
NA
NA
managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland; Denmark (Greenland) and Norway have made submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental shelf (CLCS) and Russia is collecting additional data to augment its 2001 CLCS submission
parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy
4 municipalities (kommuner, singular kommune); Kujalleq, Qaasuitsup, Qeqqata, Sermersooq
previous 1953 (Greenland established as a constituency in the Danish constitution), 1979 (Greenland Home Rule Act); latest 21 June 2009 (Greenland Self-Government Act) (2009)
18 years of age; universal
the laws of Denmark apply
unicameral Parliament or Inatsisartut (Landsting) (31 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979
Candidate List (Kattusseqatigiit) or K [Anthon FREDERIKSEN]//Democrats Party (Demokraatit) or D [Jens B. FREDERIKSEN]//Forward Party (Siumut) or S [Aleqa HAMMOND]//Inuit Community (Inuit Ataqatigiit) or IA [Kuupik KLEIST]//Inuit Party (Partii Inuit) or PI [Nikku OLSEN]//Solidarity Party (Atassut) or A [Gerhardt PETERSEN]
conservationists; environmentalists
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white; the design represents the sun reflecting off a field of ice; the colors are the same as those of the Danish flag and symbolize Greenland's links to the Kingdom of Denmark
Greenlandic (East Inuit) (official), Danish (official), English
Evangelical Lutheran, traditional Inuit spiritual beliefs
Inuit 89%, Danish and other 11% (2009)
polar bear
the Greenland Broadcasting Company provides public radio and TV services throughout the island with a broadcast station and a series of repeaters; a few private local TV and radio stations; Danish public radio rebroadcasts are available (2007)
Arctic Council, ICC, NC, NIB, UPU
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark)
79.6% of GDP (2010)
1.9% of GDP (2010)
2.8% (2011 est.)//1.7% (2010 est.)
$36.4 million (2010)//$58 million (2009)
Danish kroner (DKK) per US dollar -//5.695 (2011)//5.6241 (2012)//5.6241 (2010)//5.361 (2009)//5.0236 (2008)
$2.16 billion (2011 est.)
fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards
NA%
28,600 (2011)
9.4% (2013 est.)//4.2% (2010 est.)
The economy remains critically dependent on exports of shrimp and fish, income from resource exploration and extraction, and on a substantial subsidy from the Danish Government. The subsidy was budgeted to be about $651 million in 2012, approximately 56% of government revenues that year. The public sector, including publicly owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in Greenland's economy. Greenland's real GDP contracted about 1% in 2009 as a result of the global economic slowdown, but is estimated to have grown marginally in 2010-13. The relative ease with which Greenland has weathered the economic crisis is due to increased hydrocarbon and mineral exploration and extraction activities, a high level of construction activity in the Nuuk area and the increasing price of fish and shrimp. During the last decade the Greenland Home Rule Government (GHRG) pursued conservative fiscal and monetary policies, but public pressure has increased for better schools, health care and retirement systems. The Greenlandic economy has benefited from increasing catches and exports of shrimp, Greenland halibut and, more recently, crabs. Due to Greenland's continued dependence on exports of fish - which accounted for 89% of exports in 2010 - the economy remains very sensitive to foreign developments. International consortia are increasingly active in exploring for hydrocarbon resources off Greenland's western coast, and international studies indicate the potential for oil and gas fields in northern and northeastern Greenland. In May 2007 a US aluminum producer concluded a memorandum of understanding with the Greenland Home Rule Government to build an aluminum smelter and a power generation facility, which takes advantage of Greenland's abundant hydropower potential. Within the area of mining, olivine sand continues to be produced and gold production has resumed in south Greenland, while rare-earth and iron ore mineral projects have been proposed or planned elsewhere on the island. Tourism also offers another avenue of economic growth for Greenland, with increasing numbers of cruise lines now operating in Greenland's western and southern waters during the peak summer tourism season.
$2.133 billion (2011 est.)//$2.071 billion (2010 est.)//$1.974 billion (2009 est.)
3% (2011 est.)//4.9% (2010 est.)//-2.7% (2009 est.)
$38,400 (2008 est.)//$36,600 (2007 est.)
forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish
calendar year
$384.3 million (2010)//$358 million (2009)
Denmark 60.4%, Japan 14.6%, China 7.9% (2012)
fish and fish products 89%, metals 10% (2008)
$814.2 million (2010)//$726 million (2009)
Denmark 65.4%, Sweden 17.5%, Netherlands 5.5% (2012)
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products