American Samoa (2008) | Guam (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 | none (territory of the US) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 33.6% (male 10,049/female 9,345)
15-64 years: 63.5% (male 19,041/female 17,556) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 606/female 1,066) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.4% (male 25,645/female 23,887)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 55,115/female 52,935) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 5,157/female 5,825) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef |
Airports | 3 (2007) | 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
total: 549 sq km
land: 549 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | three times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The military installation on the island is one of the most strategically important US bases in the Pacific. |
Birth rate | 21.83 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 19.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants)
expenditures: $127 million (FY96/97) |
revenues: $340 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Pago Pago
geographic coordinates: 14 16 S, 170 42 W time difference: UTC-11 (6 hours behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Hagatna (Agana) |
Climate | tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season (November to April), dry season (May to October); little seasonal temperature variation | tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to June, rainy season from July to December; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 116 km | 125.5 km |
Constitution | ratified 2 June 1966, effective 1 July 1967 | Organic Act of 1 August 1950 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
conventional long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan |
Death rate | 3.24 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.41 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | NA |
Dependency status | unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | none (territory of the US) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | none (territory of the US) |
Disputes - international | Tokelau included American Samoa's Swains Island (Olohega) in its 2006 draft constitution | none |
Economic aid - recipient | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 | Guam receives large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143 million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees stationed in Guam (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | American Samoa has 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 commerce. 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 economy depends on US military spending, tourism, and the export of fish and handicrafts. Total US grants, wage payments, and procurement outlays amounted to $1 billion in 1998. Over the past 20 years, the tourist industry has grown rapidly, creating a construction boom for new hotels and the expansion of older ones. More than 1 million tourists visit Guam each year. The industry had recently suffered setbacks because of the continuing Japanese slowdown; the Japanese normally make up almost 90% of the tourists. Most food and industrial goods are imported. Guam faces the problem of building up the civilian economic sector to offset the impact of military downsizing. |
Electricity - consumption | 167.4 million kWh (2005) | 776.6 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 180 million kWh (2005) | 835 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata Mountain 964 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 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 | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species |
Ethnic groups | native Pacific islander 92.9%, Asian 2.9%, white 1.2%, mixed 2.8%, other 0.2% (2000 census) | Chamorro 37.1%, Filipino 26.3%, other Pacific islander 11.3%, white 6.9%, other Asian 6.3%, other ethnic origin or race 2.3%, mixed 9.8% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); 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: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as American Samoa, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 and 16 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: Togiola TULAFONO elected governor; percent of vote - Togiola TULAFONO 55.7%, Afoa Moega LUTU 44.3% |
chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Felix P. P. CAMACHO (since 6 January 2003) and Lieutenant Governor Kaleo MOYLAN (since 6 January 2003) cabinet: executive departments; heads appointed by the governor with the consent of the Guam legislature elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for a four-year term; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held November 2006) election results: Felix P. P. CAMACHO elected governor; percent of vote - Felix P. P. CAMACHO (Republican Party) 55.4%, Robert A. UNDERWOOD (Democratic Party) 44.6% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna 93% (2004 est.) | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products |
Exports - partners | Indonesia 28.2%, India 22.3%, Australia 15.3%, Japan 11.2%, NZ 7.1% (2006) | Japan 66.1%, South Korea 9.9%, Singapore 8.4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 October - 30 September |
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 | territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on all four sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipse containing a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm tree with the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is the national flag |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 7%
industry: 15% services: 78% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $21,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2003) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 14 20 S, 170 00 W | 13 28 N, 144 47 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 | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean |
Highways | - | total: 977 km
paved: 962 km unpaved: 15 km (2004) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | 3,807 bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Imports - commodities | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% (2004 est.) | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | Australia 66%, Samoa 13.8%, NZ 10.8% (2006) | Singapore 39.5%, South Korea 20.8%, Japan 19%, Hong Kong 9%, Philippines 4.3% (2004) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | none (territory of the US) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA |
Industries | tuna canneries (largely supplied by foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.47 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 6.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 0% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC, UPU | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU |
Irrigated land | NA | NA |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) | Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor) |
Labor force | 17,630 (2005) | 60,000 (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 34%
industry: 33% services: 33% (1990) |
private 74% (industry 10%, trade 24%, other services 40%), federal and territorial government 26% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 15% other: 75% (2005) |
arable land: 9.09%
permanent crops: 16.36% other: 74.55% (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) |
English 38.3%, Chamorro 22.2%, Philippine languages 22.2%, other Pacific island languages 6.8%, Asian languages 7%, other languages 3.5% (2000 census) |
Legal system | NA | modeled on US; US federal laws apply |
Legislative branch | bicameral Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of the House of Representatives (21 seats; 20 members are elected by popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains Island; to serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats; members are elected from local chiefs to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008); Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in 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 on 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008); results - Eni F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA reelected as delegate |
unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 6, Republican Party 9 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); results - Madeleine BORDALLO (Democratic Party) was elected as delegate; percent of vote by party - Democratic Party 64.6%, Republican Party 35.4%; seats by party - Democratic Party 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.25 years
male: 72.69 years female: 80.02 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 78.4 years
male: 75.34 years female: 81.64 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: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and New Zealand | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines |
Map references | Oceania | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | defense is the responsibility of the US |
National holiday | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) |
Nationality | noun: American Samoan(s) (US nationals)
adjective: American Samoan |
noun: Guamanian(s)
adjective: Guamanian |
Natural hazards | typhoons common from December to March | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) |
Natural resources | pumice, pumicite | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) |
Net migration rate | -21.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Oreta M. TOGAFAU]; Republican Party [Tautai A. F. FAALEVAO] | Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party (controls the legislature) [leader Philip J. FLORES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 57,663 (July 2007 est.) | 168,564 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 23% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.262% (2007 est.) | 1.46% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Apra Harbor |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 4, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2003) |
Religions | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.075 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.085 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.568 male(s)/female total population: 1.062 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections |
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 system, integrated with US facilities for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers
domestic: modern digital system, including cellular mobile service and local access to the Internet international: country code - 1-671; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); submarine cables to US and Japan (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for MCI, Sprint, AT&T, IT&E, and GTE, linking the US and Asia) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,400 (2004) | 84,134 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,200 (2004) | 32,600 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2006) | 5 (1997) |
Terrain | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) | volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in center, mountains in south |
Total fertility rate | 3.07 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.6 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 29.8% (2005) | 15% (2000 est.) |