Anguilla (2003) | Benin (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 24.3% (male 1,575; female 1,526)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 4,504; female 4,262) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 387; female 484) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.1% (male 1,751,709/female 1,719,138)
15-64 years: 53.5% (male 2,067,248/female 2,138,957) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 75,694/female 110,198) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | small quantities of tobacco, vegetables; cattle raising | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock |
Airports | 3 (2002) | 5 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006) |
Area | total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | about half the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | Colonized by English settlers from Saint Kitts in 1650, Anguilla was administered by Great Britain until the early 19th century, when the island - against the wishes of the inhabitants - was incorporated into a single British dependency, along with Saint Kitts and Nevis. Several attempts at separation failed. In 1971, two years after a revolt, Anguilla was finally allowed to secede; this arrangement was formally recognized in 1980, with Anguilla becoming a separate British dependency. | Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. |
Birth rate | 14.68 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 38.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $22.8 million
expenditures: $22.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $766.8 million
expenditures: $1.017 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | The Valley | name: Porto-Novo (official capital)
geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government) |
Climate | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 61 km | 121 km |
Constitution | Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 1990 | December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Anguilla |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 5.42 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 12.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $8.8 million (1998) | $1.6 billion (2000) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN
chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996 |
Disputes - international | none | Benin and Burkina Faso military clash in 2006 over sections of riverine boundary involving disputed villages and squatters; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin as a consequence of a 2004 joint task force to resolve maritime and land boundary disputes, but clashes among rival gangs along the border persist; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones |
Economic aid - recipient | $3.5 million (1995) | $342.6 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Anguilla has few natural resources, and the economy depends heavily on luxury tourism, offshore banking, lobster fishing, and remittances from emigrants. Increased activity in the tourism industry, which has spurred the growth of the construction sector, has contributed to economic growth. Anguillan officials have put substantial effort into developing the offshore financial sector, which is small, but growing. In the medium term, prospects for the economy will depend largely on the tourism sector and, therefore, on revived income growth in the industrialized nations as well as on favorable weather conditions. | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past six years, but rapid population growth has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. Many of these proposals are included in Benin's application to receive Millennium Challenge Account funding - for which it was a finalist in 2004-05. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. Benin continues to be hurt by Nigerian trade protection that bans imports of a growing list of products from Benin and elsewhere, which has resulted in increased smuggling and criminality in the border region. |
Electricity - consumption | 42.6 million kWh | 538.2 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | - | 474 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | NA (2000) | 69 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crocus Hill 65 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
Environment - current issues | supplies of potable water sometimes cannot meet increasing demand largely because of poor distribution system | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black (predominant), mulatto, white | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Peter JOHNSTONE (since NA February 2000)
head of government: Chief Minister Osbourne FLEMING (since 3 March 2000) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from among the elected members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held March 2011) election results: YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5% |
Exports | $2.6 million (1999) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | lobster, fish, livestock, salt, concrete blocks, rum | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa |
Exports - partners | UK, US, Puerto Rico, Saint-Martin (2000) | China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Anguillan coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts three orange dolphins in an interlocking circular design on a white background with blue wavy water below | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $104 million (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 18% services: 78% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 31.6%
industry: 13.8% services: 54.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,600 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% (2001 est.) | 3.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 63 10 W | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
Geography - note | the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
Highways | total: 105 km
paved: 65 km unpaved: 40 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 South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe | transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure |
Imports | $80.9 million (1999) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | fuels, foodstuffs, manufactures, chemicals, trucks, textiles | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US, Puerto Rico, UK (2000) | France 21.8%, Ghana 7.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 7%, China 6.7%, UK 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Togo 4.5%, Thailand 4.2%, Nigeria 4% (2005) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.1% (1997 est.) | 8.3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, boat building, offshore financial services | textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement |
Infant mortality rate | total: 22.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 79.56 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 84.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 74.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% | 3.5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS (associate), ECLAC (associate) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 120 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | High Court (judge provided by Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court) | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
Labor force | 6,049 (2001) | 3.211 million |
Labor force - by occupation | commerce 36%, services 29%, construction 18%, transportation and utilities 10%, manufacturing 3%, agriculture/fishing/forestry/mining 4% (2000 est,) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mostly rock with sparse scrub oak, few trees, some commercial salt ponds) (1998 est.) |
arable land: 23.53%
permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005) |
Languages | English (official) | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (11 seats total, 7 elected by direct popular vote, 2 ex officio members, and 2 appointed; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 March 2000 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ANA 3, AUP 2, ADP 1, independent 1 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, Alliance MDC-PC-CPP, IPD, AFP, MDS, RDP) 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.7 years
male: 73.79 years female: 79.7 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 53.04 years
male: 51.9 years female: 54.22 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 12 and over can read and write
total population: 95% male: 95% female: 95% (1984 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 33.6% male: 46.4% female: 22.6% (2002 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $100.9 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.3% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Anguilla Day, 30 May | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Anguillan(s)
adjective: Anguillan |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
Natural hazards | frequent hurricanes and other tropical storms (July to October) | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
Natural resources | salt, fish, lobster | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
Net migration rate | 12.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Anguilla United Party or AUP [Hubert HUGHES]; The United Front or UF [Osbourne FLEMING, Victor BANKS], a coalition of the Anguilla Democratic Party or ADP and the Anguilla National Alliance or ANA | Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD; Key Force or FC; Movement for Development and Solidarity or MDS; Movement for Development by the Culture-Salute Party-Congress of People for Progress Alliance or Alliance MDC-PS-CPP; New Alliance or NA; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 12,738 (July 2003 est.) | 7,862,944
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 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 33% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.21% (2003 est.) | 2.73% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Blowing Point, Road Bay | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Anglican 40%, Methodist 33%, Seventh-Day Adventist 7%, Baptist 5%, Roman Catholic 3%, other 12% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: modern internal telephone system international: microwave radio relay to island of Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4,974 (2000) | 76,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,629 (2000) | 386,700 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.76 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 5.2 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.7% (2001) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) |