Japan
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See regional map VIII
Geography
Total area: 377,835 km²; land area:
374,744 km²; includes Bonin Islands
(Ogasawara-guntō), Daitō-shotō, Minamijima,
Okinotori-shima, Ryukyu Islands
(Nansei-shotō), and Volcano Islands
(Kazan-rettō)
Comparative area: slightly smaller than California
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 29,751 km
Maritime claims:
- Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
- Territorial sea: 12 nm (3 nm in international straits—La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait)
Disputes: Habomai Islands, Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan Islands occupied by Soviet Union since 1945, claimed by Japan; Kuril Islands administered by Soviet Union; Liancourt Rocks disputed with South Korea; Senkaku-shotō (Senkaku Islands) claimed by China and Taiwan
Climate: varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous
Natural resources: negligible mineral resources, fish
Land use: 13% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 1% meadows and pastures; 67% forest and woodland; 18% other; includes 9% irrigated
Environment: many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; subject to tsunamis
Note: strategic location in northeast Asia
People
Population: 123,642,461 (July 1990),
growth rate 0.4% (1990)
Birth rate: 11 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 5 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 76 years male, 82 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 1.6 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun—Japanese (sing., pl.); adjective—Japanese
Ethnic divisions: 99.4% Japanese, 0.6% other (mostly Korean)
Religion: most Japanese observe both Shinto and Buddhist rites; about 16% belong to other faiths, including 0.8% Christian
Language: Japanese
Literacy: 99%
Labor force: 63,330,000; 54% trade and services; 33% manufacturing, mining, and construction; 7% agriculture, forestry, and fishing; 3% government (1988)
Organized labor: about 29% of employed workers; 76.4% public service, 57.9% transportation and telecommunications, 48.7% mining, 33.7% manufacturing, 18.2% services, 9.3% wholesale, retail, and restaurant
Government
Long-form name: none
Type: constitutional monarchy
Capital: Tokyo
Administrative divisions: 47 prefectures (fuken, singular and plural); Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gumma, Hiroshima, Hokkaidō, Hyōgo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kōchi, Kumamoto, Kyōto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Ōita, Okayama, Okinawa, Ōsaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tōkyō, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi
Independence: 660 BC, traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu; 3 May 1947, constitutional monarchy established
Constitution: 3 May 1947
Legal system: civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
National holiday: Birthday of the Emperor, 23 December (1933)
Executive branch: emperor, prime minister, Cabinet
Legislative branch: bicameral Diet (Kokkai) consists of an upper house or House of Councillors (Sangi-in) and a lower house or House of Representatives (Shūgi-in)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders: Chief of State—Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989);
Head of Government—Prime Minister Toshiki KAIFU (since 9 August 1989)
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Toshiki Kaifu, president; Japan Socialist Party (JSP), T. Doi, chairman; Democratic Socialist Party (DSP), Eiichi Nagasue, chairman; Japan Communist Party (JCP), K. Miyamoto, Presidium chairman; Komeito (Clean Government Party, CGP), Koshiro Ishida, chairman
Suffrage: universal at age 20
Elections: House of Councillors—last held on 23 July 1989 (next to be held 23 July 1992); results—percent of vote by party NA; seats—(252 total, 100 elected) LDP 109, JSP 67, CGP 21, JCP 14, others 33;
House of Representatives—last held on 18 February 1990 (next to be held by February 1993); results—percent of vote by party NA; seats—(512 total) LDP 275, JSP 136, CGP 45, JCP 16, JDSP 14, other parties 5, independents 21; note—nine independents are expected to join the LDP, five the JSP
Communists: about 470,000 registered Communist party members
Member of: ADB, ASPAC, CCC, Colombo Plan, DAC, ESCAP, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB—Inter-American Development Bank, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, ILZSG, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ISO, ITC, ITU, IWC—International Whaling Commission, IWC—International Wheat Council, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Nobuo MATSUNAGA; Chancery at 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 939-6700; there are Japanese Consulates General in Agana (Guam), Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Kansas City (Missouri), Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland (Oregon), and a Consulate in Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands); US—Ambassador Michael H. ARMACOST; Embassy at 10-1, Akasaka 1-chome, Minato-ku (107), Tokyo (mailing address is APO San Francisco 96503); telephone [81](3) 224-5000; there are US Consulates General in Naha, Osaka-Kobe, and Sapporo and a Consulate in Fukuoka
Flag: white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center
Economy
Overview: Although Japan has few natural
resources, since 1971 it has become the
world's third-largest industrial economy,
ranking behind only the US and the
USSR. Government-industry cooperation,
a strong work ethic, and a comparatively
small defense allocation have helped
Japan advance rapidly, notably in
high-technology fields. Industry, the most
important sector of the economy, is
heavily dependent on imported raw
materials and fuels. Self-sufficient in rice, Japan
must import 50% of its requirements for
other grain and fodder crops. Japan
maintains one of the world's largest fishing
fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the
total global catch. Overall economic
growth has been spectacular: a 10% average
in the 1960s, a 5% average in the
1970s and 1980s. In 1989 strong investment
and consumption spending helped
maintain growth at nearly 5%. Inflation
remains low at 2.1% despite high oil
prices and a somewhat weaker yen. Japan
continues to run a huge trade surplus, $60
billion in 1989, which supports extensive
investment in foreign properties.
GNP: $1,914.1 billion, per capita $15,600; real growth rate 4.8% (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.1% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 2.3% (1989)
Budget: revenues $392 billion; expenditures $464 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY89)
Exports: $270 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities—manufactures 97% (including machinery 38%, motor vehicles 17%, consumer electronics 10%); partners—US 34%, Southeast Asia 22%, Western Europe 21%, Communist countries 5%, Middle East 5%
Imports: $210 billion (c.i.f., 1989); commodities—manufactures 42%, fossil fuels 30%, foodstuffs 15%, nonfuel raw materials 13%; partners—Southeast Asia 23%, US 23%, Middle East 15%, Western Europe 16%, Communist countries 7%
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate 9.0% (1989)
Electricity: 191,000,000 kW capacity; 700,000 million kWh produced, 5,680 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: metallurgy, engineering, electrical and electronic, textiles, chemicals, automobiles, fishing
Agriculture: accounts for 3% of GNP; highly subsidized and protected sector, with crop yields among highest in world; principal crops—rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; animal products include pork, poultry, dairy and eggs; about 50% self-sufficient in food production; shortages of wheat, corn, soybeans; world's largest fish catch of 11.8 million metric tons in 1987
Aid: donor—ODA and OOF commitments (1970-87), $57.5 billion
Currency: yen (plural yen); 1 yen (¥) = 100 sen
Exchange rates: yen (¥) per US$1—145.09 (January 1990), 137.96 (1989), 128.15 (1988), 144.64 (1987), 168.52 (1986), 238.54 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
Communications
Railroads: 27,327 km total; 2,012 km
1.435-meter standard gauge and 25,315
km predominantly 1.067-meter narrow
gauge; 5,724 km doubletrack and
multitrack sections, 9,038 km 1.067-meter
narrow-gauge electrified, 2,012 km 1.435-meter
standard-gauge electrified (1987)
Highways: 1,098,900 km total; 718,700 km paved, 380,200 km gravel, crushed stone, or unpaved; 3,900 km national expressways, 46,544 km national highways, 43,907 km principal local roads, 86,930 km prefectural roads, and 917,619 other (1987)
Inland waterways: about 1,770 km; seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas
Pipelines: crude oil, 84 km; refined products, 322 km; natural gas, 1,800 km
Ports: Chiba, Muroran, Kitakyushu, Kobe, Tomakomai, Nagoya, Osaka, Tokyo, Yokkaichi, Yokohama, Kawasaki, Niigata, Fushiki-Toyama, Shimizu, Himeji, Wakayama-Shimozu, Shimonoseki, Tokuyama-Shimomatsu
Merchant marine: 1,088 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 23,597,688 GRT/36,655,266 DWT; includes 7 passenger, 57 short-sea passenger, 4 passenger cargo, 108 cargo, 44 container, 27 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 135 refrigerated cargo, 117 vehicle carrier, 237 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 21 chemical tanker, 42 liquefied gas, 12 combination ore/oil, 3 specialized tanker, 272 bulk, 1 combination bulk, 1 multifunction large-load carrier
Civil air: 341 major transport aircraft
Airports: 165 total, 156 usable; 128 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 27 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 55 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: excellent domestic and international service; 64,000,000 telephones; stations—318 AM, 58 FM, 12,350 TV (196 major—1 kw or greater); satellite earth stations—4 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT; submarine cables to US (via Guam), Philippines, China, and USSR
Defense Forces
Branches: Japan Ground Self-Defense
Force (army), Japan Maritime
Self-Defense Force (navy), Japan Air
Self-Defense Force (air force), Maritime Safety
Agency (coast guard)
Military manpower: males 15-49, 32,181,866; 27,695,890 fit for military service; 1,004,052 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: 1% of GNP (1989 est.)