American Samoa (2005) | Cameroon (2005) | |
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 | 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest |
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: 41.7% (male 3,457,180/female 3,375,668)
15-64 years: 55% (male 4,537,281/female 4,477,163) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 239,634/female 293,079) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock | coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber |
Airports | 3 (2004 est.) | 47 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 9 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
total: 475,440 sq km
land: 469,440 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly larger than California |
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. | The former French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon merged in 1961 to form the present country. Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability, which has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, and railways, as well as a petroleum industry. Despite movement toward democratic reform, political power remains firmly in the hands of an ethnic oligarchy. |
Birth rate | 23.13 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 34.67 births/1,000 population (2005 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: $2.493 billion
expenditures: $2.248 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Pago Pago | Yaounde |
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 | varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north |
Coastline | 116 km | 402 km |
Constitution | ratified 2 June 1966, effective 1 July 1967 | 20 May 1972 approved by referendum, 2 June 1972 formally adopted; revised January 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
conventional long form: Republic of Cameroon
conventional short form: Cameroon former: French Cameroon |
Death rate | 3.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 15.4 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $8.46 billion (2004 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 George McDade STAPLES
embassy: Rue Nachtigal, Yaounde mailing address: P. O. Box 817, Yaounde; pouch: American Embassy, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 223-05-12, 222-25-89, 222-17-94, 223-40-14 FAX: [237] 223-07-53 branch office(s): Douala |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Jerome MENDOUGA
chancery: 2349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-8790 FAX: [1] (202) 387-3826 |
Disputes - international | none | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission, which continues to meet regularly to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; implementation of the ICJ ruling on the Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea is impeded by imprecisely defined coordinates, the unresolved Bakassi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi Peninsula, then agreed, but has yet to withdraw its forces while much of the indigenous population opposes cession; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger |
Economic aid - recipient | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 | on 23 January 2001, the Paris Club agreed to reduce Cameroon's debt of $1.3 billion by $900 million; debt relief now totals $1.26 billion |
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. | Because of its oil resources and favorable agricultural conditions, Cameroon has one of the best-endowed primary commodity economies in sub-Saharan Africa. Still, it faces many of the serious problems facing other underdeveloped countries, such as a top-heavy civil service and a generally unfavorable climate for business enterprise. Since 1990, the government has embarked on various IMF and World Bank programs designed to spur business investment, increase efficiency in agriculture, improve trade, and recapitalize the nation's banks. In June 2000, the government completed an IMF-sponsored, three-year structural adjustment program; however, the IMF is pressing for more reforms, including increased budget transparency, privatization, and poverty reduction programs. International oil and cocoa prices have considerable impact on the economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 120.9 million kWh (2002) | 3.321 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 130 million kWh (2002) | 3.571 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata 966 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako (on Mount Cameroon) 4,095 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 | waterborne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
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) | Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwestern Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) |
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: President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982)
head of government: Prime Minister Ephraim INONI (since 8 Dec 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from proposals submitted by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held NA October 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Paul BIYA reelected; percent of vote - Paul BIYA 70.9%, John FRU NDI 17.4%, Adamou Ndam NJOYA 4.5%, Garga Haman ADJI 3.7% |
Exports | NA | NA |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna 93% | crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton |
Exports - partners | Samoa 39.8%, Australia 19.9%, Japan 15.1%, New Zealand 10.5% (2004) | Spain 15.2%, Italy 12.3%, UK 10.2%, France 9.2%, US 8.8%, South Korea 7.1%, Netherlands 4.3% (2004) |
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 vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 43.7%
industry: 20.1% services: 36.2% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 4.9% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 20 S, 170 00 W | 6 00 N, 12 00 E |
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 | sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano |
Highways | total: 185 km
paved: 185 km unpaved: 0 km (2004) |
total: 34,300 km
paved: 4,288 km unpaved: 30,012 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.9%
highest 10%: 36.6% (1996) |
Imports | NA | NA |
Imports - commodities | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% | machinery, electrical equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food |
Imports - partners | Japan 31.4%, New Zealand 27.9%, Germany 17.1%, Australia 8.9% (2004) | France 28.2%, Nigeria 9.9%, Belgium 7.6%, US 4.9%, China 4.8%, Germany 4.6%, Italy 4.1% (2004) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 1 January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.2% (1999 est.) |
Industries | tuna canneries (largely supplied by foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts | petroleum production and refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair |
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.) |
total: 68.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 72.14 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 1% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, C, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 330 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); High Court of Justice (consists of 9 judges and 6 substitute judges, elected by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 14,000 (1996) | 6.68 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | tuna canneries 34%, government 33%, other 33% (1990) | agriculture 70%, industry and commerce 13%, other 17% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,591 km
border countries: Central African Republic 797 km, Chad 1,094 km, Republic of the Congo 523 km, Equatorial Guinea 189 km, Gabon 298 km, Nigeria 1,690 km |
Land use | arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 15% other: 75% (2001) |
arable land: 12.81%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 84.61% (2001) |
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) |
24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) |
Legal system | NA | based on French civil law system, with common law influence; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - the president can either lengthen or shorten the term of the legislature)
elections: last held 23 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RDCP 133, SDF 21, UDC 5, other 21 note: the constitution calls for an upper chamber for the legislature, to be called a Senate, but it has yet to be established |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.84 years
male: 72.27 years female: 79.62 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 50.89 years
male: 50.71 years female: 51.08 years (2005 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: 79% male: 84.7% female: 73.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and New Zealand | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 50 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 169,593 GRT/357,023 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Cameroon Armed Forces: Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $221.1 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.6% (2004) |
National holiday | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) | Republic Day (National Day), 20 May (1972) |
Nationality | noun: American Samoan(s)
adjective: American Samoan |
noun: Cameroonian(s)
adjective: Cameroonian |
Natural hazards | typhoons common from December to March | volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes |
Natural resources | pumice, pumicite | petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -20.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 90 km; liquid petroleum gas 9 km; oil 1,120 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Oreta M. TOGAFAU]; Republican Party [Tautai A. F. FAALEVAO] | Cameroonian Democratic Union or UDC [Adamou NDAM NJOYA]; Democratic Rally of the Cameroon People or RDCP [Paul BIYA]; Movement for the Defense of the Republic or MDR [Dakole DAISSALA]; Movement for the Liberation and Development of Cameroon or MLDC [leader Marcel YONDO]; Movement for the Youth of Cameroon or MYC [Dieudonne TINA]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Maigari BELLO BOUBA]; Social Democratic Front or SDF [John FRU NDI]; Union of Cameroonian Populations or UPC [Augustin Frederic KODOCK] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Southern Cameroon National Council [Ayamba Ette OTUN]; Human Rights Defense Group [Albert MUKONG, president] |
Population | 57,881 (July 2005 est.) | 16,380,005
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 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 48% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.11% (2005 est.) | 1.93% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Pago Pago | Douala, Limboh Terminal |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2002) |
Railways | - | total: 1,008 km
narrow gauge: 1,008 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% | indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 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: available only to business and government
domestic: cable, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter international: country code - 237; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15,000 (2001) | 110,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,377 (1999) | 1.077 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1; note - one cable TV station (2004) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) | diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | 3.25 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 4.47 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% (2000) | 30% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | navigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2004) |