American Samoa (2005) | Bahamas, The (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three districts and two islands* at the second order; Eastern, Manu'a, Rose Island*, Swains Island*, Western | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nicholls Town and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.7% (male 10,705/female 9,956)
15-64 years: 61.3% (male 18,351/female 17,125) 65 years and over: 3% (male 664/female 1,080) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
29.43% (male 44,179; female 43,486) 15-64 years: 64.46% (male 94,329; female 97,674) 65 years and over: 6.11% (male 7,618; female 10,566) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock | citrus, vegetables; poultry |
Airports | 3 (2004 est.) | 65 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
36 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
29 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
total:
13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | Settled as early as 1000 B.C., Samoa was "discovered" by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year. | Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. |
Birth rate | 23.13 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants)
expenditures: $127 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY96/97) |
revenues:
$766 million expenditures: $845 million, including capital expenditures of $97 million (FY97/98) |
Capital | Pago Pago | Nassau |
Climate | tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season from November to April, dry season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream |
Coastline | 116 km | 3,542 km |
Constitution | ratified 2 June 1966, effective 1 July 1967 | 10 July 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
conventional long form:
Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas |
Currency | - | Bahamian dollar (BSD) |
Death rate | 3.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 7.14 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $385.8 million (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate J. Richard BLANKENSHIP embassy: Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; stateside address: American Embassy Nassau, P. O. Box 599009, Miami, FL 33159-9009; pouch address: Nassau, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joshua SEARS chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 | $9.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | This is a traditional Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned. Economic activity is strongly linked to the US, with which American Samoa conducts most of its foreign trade. Tuna fishing and tuna processing plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the primary export. Transfers from the US Government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes. Tourism is a promising developing sector. | The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs 40% of the archipelago's labor force. Moderate growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences led to an increase of the country's GDP by an estimated 3% in 1998, 6% in 1999, and 4.5% in 2000. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute only 10% of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run will depend heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector and continued sturdy growth in the US, which accounts for the majority of tourist visitors. |
Electricity - consumption | 120.9 million kWh (2002) | 1.362 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 130 million kWh (2002) | 1.465 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata 966 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources; the water division of the government has spent substantial funds in the past few years to improve water catchments and pipelines | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | native Pacific islander 92.9%, Asian 2.9%, white 1.2%, mixed 2.8%, other 0.2% (2000 census) | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate pegged to the dollar) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Togiola TULAFONO (since 7 April 2003) cabinet: cabinet made up of 12 department directors elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 2 and 16 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Togiola TULAFONO elected governor; percent of vote - Togiola TULAFONO 55.7%, Afoa Moega LUTU 44.3% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Orville TURNQUEST (since 2 January 1995) head of government: Prime Minister Hubert Alexander INGRAHAM (since 19 August 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Frank WATSON (since December 1994) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | NA | $376.8 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna 93% | pharmaceuticals, cement, rum, crawfish, refined petroleum products |
Exports - partners | Samoa 39.8%, Australia 19.9%, Japan 15.1%, New Zealand 10.5% (2004) | US 22.3%, Switzerland 15.6%, UK 15%, Denmark 7.4% (1998) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is based on the outer side and extends to the hoist side; a brown and white American bald eagle flying toward the hoist side is carrying two traditional Samoan symbols of authority, a staff and a war club | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $4.5 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
3% industry: 7% services: 90% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 4.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 20 S, 170 00 W | 24 15 N, 76 00 W |
Geography - note | Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location in the South Pacific Ocean | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 185 km
paved: 185 km unpaved: 0 km (2004) |
total:
2,693 km paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; banking industry vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | NA | $1.73 billion (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% | foodstuffs, manufactured goods, crude oil, vehicles, electronics |
Imports - partners | Japan 31.4%, New Zealand 27.9%, Germany 17.1%, Australia 8.9% (2004) | US 27.3%, Italy 26.5%, Japan 10%, Denmark 4.2% (1998) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 10 July 1973 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tuna canneries (largely supplied by foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts | tourism, banking, cement, oil refining and transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe |
Infant mortality rate | total: 9.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
17.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 1.9% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts |
Labor force | 14,000 (1996) | 156,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | tuna canneries 34%, government 33%, other 33% (1990) | tourism 40%, other services 50%, industry 5%, agriculture 5% (1995 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 15% other: 75% (2001) |
arable land:
1% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 32% other: 67% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Samoan 90.6% (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages), English 2.9%, Tongan 2.4%, other Pacific islander 2.1%, other 2%
note: most people are bilingual (2000 census) |
English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants) |
Legal system | NA | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of the House of Representatives (21 seats - 20 of which are elected by popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains Island; members serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats; members are elected from local chiefs and serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - independents 18 note: American Samoa elects one nonvoting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); results - Eni F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA (Democrat) reelected as delegate |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 March 1997 (next to be held by March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FNM 35, PLP 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.84 years
male: 72.27 years female: 79.62 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
70.46 years male: 67.27 years female: 73.71 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 98% female: 97% (1980 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.2% male: 98.5% female: 98% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and New Zealand | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1,049 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 30,000,221 GRT/44,601,471 DWT ships by type: bulk 185, cargo 214, chemical tanker 36, combination bulk 15, combination ore/oil 22, container 66, liquefied gas 33, livestock carrier 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 4, passenger 79, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 182, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 118, roll on/roll off 50, short-sea passenger 15, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 24 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Algeria 2, Australia 1, Austria 1, Bermuda 6, Belgium 14, Canada 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 2, Denmark 17, Finland 7, France 9, Germany 9, Greece 89, Hong Kong 7, Indonesia 2, India 1, Israel 4, Italy 8, Japan 23, Jamaica 1, Kenya 1, Lebanon 2, Luxembourg 2, Monaco 15, Malaysia 1, Netherlands 16, Norway 139, Poland 3, Portugal 2, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 5, Singapore 12, Spain 7, Sweden 14, Syria 1, Switzerland 7, UAE 1, Trinidad and Tobago 2, UK 67, Ukraine 3, US 50, British Virgin Islands 1, British Virgin Islands 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Coast Guard only), Royal Bahamas Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $20 million (FY95/96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) |
Nationality | noun: American Samoan(s)
adjective: American Samoan |
noun:
Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian |
Natural hazards | typhoons common from December to March | hurricanes and other tropical storms that cause extensive flood and wind damage |
Natural resources | pumice, pumicite | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | -20.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -2.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Oreta M. TOGAFAU]; Republican Party [Tautai A. F. FAALEVAO] | Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert Alexander INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 57,881 (July 2005 est.) | 297,852
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.11% (2005 est.) | 0.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Pago Pago | Freeport, Matthew Town, Nassau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004) | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 215,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% | Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: good telex, telegraph, facsimile and cellular telephone services; domestic satellite system with 1 Comsat earth station international: country code - 1-684; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment:
modern facilities domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15,000 (2001) | 96,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,377 (1999) | 6,152 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1; note - one cable TV station (2004) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills |
Total fertility rate | 3.25 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.3 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% (2000) | 9% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |