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Scandanavia

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and related languages. The southern and by far most populous regions of Scandinavia have a temperate climate. Scandinavia extends to the north of the Arctic Circle, but has relatively mild weather for its latitude due to the Gulf Stream.

Governance Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution. Most constitutional monarchies employ a parliamentary system in which the monarch may have strictly ceremonial duties or may have reserve powers, depending on the constitution. Under most modern constitutional monarchies there is also a prime minister who is the head of government and exercises effective political power. Contemporary constitutional monarchies include the United Kingdom and Commonwealth realms, Belgium, Bhutan, Bahrain, Cambodia, Denmark, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Morocco, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Swaziland, Sweden and Thailand.

Scandinavia and the EU

Norway and the EU There are several important reasons why Norway has not joined the European Union. The Scandinavian country has applied twice to join the community, but has failed in its bid due to two national referendums, held in 1972, and again in 1994. Norway is a nation which has been dominated by foreign powers for centuries, and holds its independence as of primary importance. Thus, the Norwegian people have shown to be very defensive in such matters. Further, Norway's geographical position at the northern extreme of Europe has had a large impact on their reluctance to join the European Economic Community (EEC). The Norwegians have always been in closer contact with the other Scandinavian countries and Great Britain, and as such have been more likely to cooperate with those nations as opposed to continental Europe. Issues such as North Sea oil and the fishing industry have all played a role. As the EU has expanded and more nations have become members.

The EFTA The European Free Trade Association or EFTA is a free trade organisation between four European countries that operates parallel to, and is linked to, the European Union (EU). EFTA was established on 3 May 1960 as a trade bloc-alternative for European states who were either unable to, or chose not to, join the then-European Economic Community (EEC) which has now become the EU. The Stockholm Convention, establishing EFTA, was signed on 4 January 1960 in Stockholm by seven countries. Today's EFTA members are Liechtenstein, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland EFTA states have jointly concluded free trade agreements with a number of other countries. Norway is part of the European Union Internal Market through the Agreement on a European Economic Area (EEA), which took effect in 1994.

Types of indicator

Quantitative indicators Quantitative indicators are numerical indications of development. Economic indicators include GNP (Gross National Product) per capita, unemployment rates, energy consumption and percentage of GNP in primary industries. Of these, GNP per capita is the most used as it measures the value of all the goods and services produced in a country, excluding those produced by foreign companies, hence measuring the economic and industrial development of the country. Social indications include access to clean water and sanitation (which indicate the level of infrastructure developed in the country) and adult literacy rate, measuring the resources the government has to meet the needs of the people. Demographic indicators include the birth rate, death rate and fertility rate, which indicate the level of industrialization.[4] Health indicators (a sub-factor of demographic indicators) include nutrition (calories per day, calories from protein, percentage of population with malnutrition), infant mortality and population per doctor, which indicate the availability of healthcare and sanitation facilities in a country. Environmental indications include how much a country does for the environment.

Composite indicators Composite measures include the PQLI (Physical Quality of Life Index) which was a precursor to the HDI which used infant mortality rate instead of GNP per capita and rated countries from 0 to 100. It was calculated by assigning each country a score of 0 to 100 for each indicator compared with other countries in the world. The average of these three numbers makes the PQLI of a country. The HPI (Human Poverty Index) is used to calculate the percentage of people in a country who live in relative poverty. In order to better differentiate the number of people in abnormally poor living conditions the HPI-1 is used in developing countries, and the HPI-2 is used in developed countries. The HPI-1 is calculated based on the percentage of people not expected to survive to 40, the adult illiteracy rate, the percentage of people without access to safe water, health services and the percentage of children under 5 who are underweight. The HPI-2 is calculated based on the percentage of people who do not survive to 60, the adult functional illiteracy rate and the percentage of people living below 50% of median personal disposable income. The GDI (Gender-related Development Index) measures gender equality in a country in terms of life expectancy, literacy rates, school attendance and income.

Qualitative indicators Qualitative indicators include descriptions of living conditions and people's quality of life. They are useful in analysing features that are not easily calculated or measured in numbers such as freedom, corruption or security, which are mainly non-material benefits.