,000 with a $25,710 per capita (1996 est.).With agriculture (primarily dairy and livestock) only making up 2.5 % of the G.D.P., Sweden’s key manufacturing industries are precision parts, paper, iron, steel, and processed food. The crops that they do produce are mainly potatoes, grains and sugar beats. Their natural resources are iron ore, lead, copper, zinc, silver and uranium. Sweden is close to 80 % sufficient in providing their own agricultural needs. Recently there have been many measures taken to stop factory-farming companies and to increase the upholding of animal rights.State involvement in the economy is basically focused on supporting infrastructure and providing services. Sweden has developed an extensive social welfare system which the expense of maintaining has undermined the wealth of the country as a whole. Because of the abundance of social services that Sweden provides for their people (from birth until death), Sweden has one of the highest tax systems in the world. There is a traditionally a low unemployment rate, in addition to very low crime rate. There is an active Government Labor Market policy that results in very few labor disputes, being very beneficial to the population since 80 % of the labor force is unionized.Sweden’s education system is organized in a simplistic fashion. Basic education, between the ages of seven and fifteen years, is compulsory. At sixteen years of age, children can attend upper secondary schools that can provide them with general and specialized vocational courses. After that is completed, they have the choice to continue on with college. Sweden is home to 34 universities.The current constitution was passed in 1974 and took effect in 1975, replacing the former one of 1809. The constitution is composed of four basic documents; the Instrument of Government (Regeringsformen) is what sets forth the basic rules of the political system:vThe Act of succession, which gover...
