Compare Antigua and Barbuda (2006) - Costa Rica (2006)

Compare Antigua and Barbuda (2006) z Costa Rica (2006)

	Antigua and Barbuda (2006)	Costa Rica (2006)

Administrative divisions	6 parishes and 2 dependencies; Barbuda, Redonda, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip*	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose
Age structure	0-14 years: 27.6% (male 9,716/female 9,375) 15-64 years: 68.5% (male 23,801/female 23,524) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 1,020/female 1,672) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 28.3% (male 590,261/female 563,196) 15-64 years: 66% (male 1,359,750/female 1,329,346) 65 years and over: 5.7% (male 108,041/female 124,667) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock	coffee, pineapples, bananas, sugar, corn, rice, beans, potatoes; beef; timber
Airports	3 (2006)	157 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	total: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 9 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	total: 125 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 101 (2006)
Area	total: 442.6 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km) land: 442.6 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km	total: 51,100 sq km land: 50,660 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Isla del Coco
Area - comparative	2.5 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than West Virginia
Background	The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak Indians populated the islands when Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981.	Although explored by the Spanish early in the 16th century, initial attempts at colonizing Costa Rica proved unsuccessful due to a combination of factors, including: disease from mosquito-infested swamps, brutal heat, resistance by natives, and pirate raids. It was not until 1563 that a permanent settlement of Cartago was established in the cooler, fertile central highlands. The area remained a colony for some two and a half centuries. In 1821, Costa Rica became one of several Central American provinces that jointly declared their independence from Spain. Two years later it joined the United Provinces of Central America, but this federation disintegrated in 1838, at which time Costa Rica proclaimed its sovereignty and independence. Since the late 19th century, only two brief periods of violence have marred the country's democratic development. Although it still maintains a large agricultural sector, Costa Rica has expanded its economy to include strong technology and tourism industries. The standard of living is relatively high. Land ownership is widespread.
Birth rate	16.93 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	18.32 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $123.7 million expenditures: $145.9 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)	revenues: $2.722 billion expenditures: $3.195 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	name: Saint John's geographic coordinates: 17 06 N, 61 51 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: San Jose geographic coordinates: 9 56 N, 84 05 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation	tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November); cooler in highlands
Coastline	153 km	1,290 km
Constitution	1 November 1981	7 November 1949
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda	conventional long form: Republic of Costa Rica conventional short form: Costa Rica local long form: Republica de Costa Rica local short form: Costa Rica
Death rate	5.37 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	4.36 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$427.3 million; note - data are for public external debt, not total external debt (2000)	$5.049 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda	chief of mission: Ambassador Mark LANGDALE embassy: Calle 120 Avenida O, Pavas, San Jose mailing address: APO AA 34020 telephone: [506] 519-2000 FAX: [506] 519-2305
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Deborah Mae LOVELL chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 362-5122 FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami	chief of mission: Ambassador Tomas DUENAS chancery: 2114 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-2945 FAX: [1] (202) 265-4795 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Hammond (temporary location in Louisiana), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Tampa (temporarily closed), Washington, DC consulate(s): San Francisco
Disputes - international	none	in September 2005, Costa Rica took its case before the ICJ to advocate the navigation, security, and commercial rights of Costa Rican vessels using the Río San Juan over which Nicaragua retains sovereignty
Economic aid - recipient	$1.65 million (2004)	-
Economy - overview	Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals.	Costa Rica's basically stable economy depends on tourism, agriculture, and electronics exports. Poverty has been substantially reduced over the past 15 years, and a strong social safety net has been put into place. Foreign investors remain attracted by the country's political stability and high education levels, and tourism continues to bring in foreign exchange. Low prices for coffee and bananas have hurt the agricultural sector. The government continues to grapple with its large internal and external deficits and sizable internal debt. The reduction of inflation remains a difficult problem because of rises in the price of imports, labor market rigidities, and fiscal deficits. The country also needs to reform its tax system and its pattern of public expenditure. Costa Rica is the only signatory to the US-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) that has not ratified it. CAFTA implementation would result in economic reforms and an improved investment climate.
Electricity - consumption	93 million kWh (2003)	7.12 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	115 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	50 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	100 million kWh (2003)	7.726 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Chirripo 3,810 m
Environment - current issues	water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly	deforestation and land use change, largely a result of the clearing of land for cattle ranching and agriculture; soil erosion; coastal marine pollution; fisheries protection; solid waste management; air pollution
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian	white (including mestizo) 94%, black 3%, Amerindian 1%, Chinese 1%, other 1%
Exchange rates	East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001) note: fixed rate since 1976	Costa Rican colones per US dollar - 477.79 (2005), 437.91 (2004), 398.66 (2003), 359.82 (2002), 328.87 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir James B. CARLISLE (since 10 June 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Winston Baldwin SPENCER (since 24 March 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general	chief of state: President Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (since 8 May 2006); First Vice President Laura CHINCHILLA (since 8 May 2006); Second Vice President Kevin CASAS Zamora (since 8 May 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (since 8 May 2006); First Vice President Laura CHINCHILLA (since 8 May 2006); Second Vice President Kevin CASAS Zamora (since 8 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president elections: president and vice presidents elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term; election last held 5 February 2006 (next to be held February 2010) election results: Oscar ARIAS Sanchez elected president; percent of vote - Oscar ARIAS Sanchez (PLN) 40.9%; Otto SOLIS (PAC) 39.8%, Otto GUEVARA Guth (PML) 8%, Ricardo TOLEDO (PUSC) 3%; note - official results pending the resolution of election challenges
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8%	coffee, bananas, sugar, pineapples; textiles, electronic components, medical equipment
Exports - partners	Spain 34%, Germany 20.7%, Italy 7.7%, Singapore 5.8%, UK 4.9% (2005)	US 42.6%, Hong Kong 6.9%, Netherlands 6.4%, Guatemala 4.2% (2005)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band	five horizontal bands of blue (top), white, red (double width), white, and blue, with the coat of arms in a white elliptical disk on the hoist side of the red band; above the coat of arms a light blue ribbon contains the words, AMERICA CENTRAL, and just below it near the top of the coat of arms is a white ribbon with the words, REPUBLICA COSTA RICA
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3.8% industry: 22% services: 74.3% (2002)	agriculture: 8.8% industry: 29.9% services: 61.4% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.8% (2005 est.)	5.9% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	17 03 N, 61 48 W	10 00 N, 84 00 W
Geography - note	Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor	four volcanoes, two of them active, rise near the capital of San Jose in the center of the country; one of the volcanoes, Irazu, erupted destructively in 1963-65
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 1.1% highest 10%: 36.8% (2002)
Illicit drugs	considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center	transshipment country for cocaine and heroin from South America; illicit production of cannabis on small, scattered plots; domestic cocaine consumption, particularly crack cocaine, is rising
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil	raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum
Imports - partners	US 21.1%, China 16.4%, Germany 13.3%, Singapore 12.7%, Spain 6.5% (2005)	US 41.3%, Japan 5.6%, Venezuela 4.8%, Mexico 4.8%, Ireland 4.3%, Brazil 4.2%, China 4.2% (2005)
Independence	1 November 1981 (from UK)	15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate	6% (1997 est.)	5.7% (2005 est.)
Industries	tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances)	microprocessors, food processing, textiles and clothing, construction materials, fertilizer, plastic products
Infant mortality rate	total: 18.86 deaths/1,000 live births male: 22.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 9.7 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	0.9% (2005 est.)	13.8% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	1,080 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction); member Caribbean Court of Justice	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (22 justices are elected for eight-year terms by the Legislative Assembly)
Labor force	30,000	1.82 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 7% industry: 11% services: 82% (1983)	agriculture: 20% industry: 22% services: 58% (1999 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 639 km border countries: Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km
Land use	arable land: 18.18% permanent crops: 4.55% other: 77.27% (2005)	arable land: 4.4% permanent crops: 5.87% other: 89.73% (2005)
Languages	English (official), local dialects	Spanish (official), English
Legal system	based on English common law	based on Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 23 March 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP 4, UPP 13	unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (57 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5 February 2006 (next to be held February 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PLN 25, PAC 18, PML 6, PUSC 4, other 4
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 72.16 years male: 69.78 years female: 74.66 years (2006 est.)	total population: 77.02 years male: 74.43 years female: 79.74 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling total population: 85.8% male: NA% female: NA% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96% male: 95.9% female: 96.1% (2003 est.)
Location	Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico	Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 1,011 ships (1000 GRT or over) 7,452,503 GRT/9,783,309 DWT by type: bulk carrier 40, cargo 596, chemical tanker 7, container 321, liquefied gas 11, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 21 foreign-owned: 984 (Australia 1, Bangladesh 4, Belgium 4, Colombia 2, Denmark 14, Estonia 12, France 1, Germany 858, Iceland 8, Isle of Man 2, Latvia 5, Lebanon 1, Lithuania 3, Netherlands 14, Norway 11, NZ 1, Poland 3, Russia 6, Singapore 1, Slovenia 6, Switzerland 4, Turkey 8, UK 7, US 7, Vietnam 1) (2006)	total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,308 GRT/743 DWT by type: passenger/cargo 2 (2006)
Military branches	Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force (2006)	no regular military forces; Ministry of Public Security, Government, and Police (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	$83.46 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	0.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981)	Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Nationality	noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s) adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan	noun: Costa Rican(s) adjective: Costa Rican
Natural hazards	hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts	occasional earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic coast; frequent flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season and landslides; active volcanoes
Natural resources	NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism	hydropower
Net migration rate	-6.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	0.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	-	refined products 242 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; National Democratic Congress [Tillman THOMAS]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three opposition parties - Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, Progressive Labor Movement or PLM, United National Democratic Party or UNDP)	Authentic Member from Heredia [Jose SALAS]; Citizen Action Party or PAC [Otton SOLIS]; Costa Rican Renovation Party or PRC [Gerardo Justo OROZCO Alvarez]; Democratic Force Party or PFD [Vladimir DE LA CRUZ]; General Union Party or PUGEN [Carlos Alberto FERNANDEZ Vega]; Homeland First or PP [Juan Jose VARGAS Fallas]; Independent Worker Party or PIO [Jose Alberto CUBERO Carmona]; Libertarian Movement Party or PML [Otto GUEVARA Guth]; National Christian Alliance Party or ANC [Juan Carlos CHAVEZ Mora]; National Integration Party or PIN [Walter MUNOZ Cespedes]; National Liberation Party or PLN [Francisco Antonio PACHECO]; National Patriotic Party or PPN [Daniel Enrique REYNOLDS Vargas]; National Restoration Party or PRN [Carlos AVENDANO]; Nationalist Democratic Alliance or ADN [Jose Miguel VILLALOBOS Umana]; Patriotic Union or UP [Humberto ARCE Salas]; Social Christian Unity Party or PUSC [Lorena VASQUEZ Badilla]; Union for Change Party or UPC [Antonio ALVAREZ Desanti]; United Leftist Coalition or IU [Humberto VARGAS Carbonel]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL]	Authentic Confederation of Democratic Workers or CATD (Communist Party affiliate); Chamber of Coffee Growers; Confederated Union of Workers or CUT (Communist Party affiliate); Costa Rican Confederation of Democratic Workers or CCTD (Liberation Party affiliate); Federation of Public Service Workers or FTSP; National Association for Economic Development or ANFE; National Association of Educators or ANDE; Rerum Novarum or CTRN (PLN affiliate) [Gilbert BROWN]
Population	69,108 (July 2006 est.)	4,075,261 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	18% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	0.55% (2006 est.)	1.45% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 65, FM 51, shortwave 19 (2002)
Railways	-	total: 278 km narrow gauge: 278 km 1.067-m gauge (2005)
Religions	Christian (predominantly Anglican with other Protestant, and some Roman Catholic)	Roman Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.3%, other Protestant 0.7%, other 4.8%, none 3.2%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: good automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-268; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 2; tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe	general assessment: good domestic telephone service in terms of breadth of coverage; restricted cellular telephone service domestic: point-to-point and point-to-multi-point microwave, fiber-optic, and coaxial cable link rural areas; Internet service is available international: country code - 506; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); two submarine cables (1999)
Telephones - main lines in use	38,000 (2004)	1,388,500 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	54,000 (2004)	1.101 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (1997)	20 (plus 43 repeaters) (2002)
Terrain	mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas	coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones, of which several are major volcanoes
Total fertility rate	2.24 children born/woman (2006 est.)	2.24 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	11% (2001 est.)	6.6% (2005 est.)
Waterways	-	730 km (seasonally navigable by small craft) (2005)

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.