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Compare Bahamas, The (2001) - Sao Tome and Principe (2008)
Compare Bahamas, The (2001) z Sao Tome and Principe (2008)
| Bahamas, The (2001) | Sao Tome and Principe (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 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 | 2 provinces; Principe, Sao Tome
note: Principe has had self government since 29 April 1995 |
| Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 47.3% (male 47,796/female 46,589)
15-64 years: 49% (male 47,386/female 50,412) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 3,383/female 4,013) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | citrus, vegetables; poultry | cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish |
| Airports | 65 (2000 est.) | 2 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | 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.) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
29 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
- |
| Area | total:
13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
total: 1,001 sq km
land: 1,001 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
| Background | 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. | Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and two failed coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea promises to attract increased attention to the small island nation. |
| Birth rate | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 39.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$766 million expenditures: $845 million, including capital expenditures of $97 million (FY97/98) |
revenues: $74.11 million
expenditures: $57.71 million (2007 est.) |
| Capital | Nassau | name: Sao Tome
geographic coordinates: 0 12 N, 6 39 E time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream | tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May) |
| Coastline | 3,542 km | 209 km |
| Constitution | 10 July 1973 | approved March 1990, effective 10 September 1990 |
| Country name | conventional long form:
Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas |
conventional long form: Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe
conventional short form: Sao Tome and Principe local long form: Republica Democratica de Sao Tome e Principe local short form: Sao Tome e Principe |
| Currency | Bahamian dollar (BSD) | - |
| Death rate | 7.14 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $385.8 million (2000 est.) | $318 million (2002) |
| Diplomatic representation from 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Sao Tome and Principe; the Ambassador to Gabon is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe on a nonresident basis and makes periodic visits to the islands |
| Diplomatic representation in 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 |
chief of mission: First Secretary Domingos Augusto FERREIRA
chancery: 400 Park Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (212) 317-0580 FAX: [1] (212) 935-7348 consulate(s): Atlanta |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $9.8 million (1995) | $31.9 million in December 2000 under the HIPC program (2005) |
| Economy - overview | 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. | This small, poor island economy has become increasingly dependent on cocoa since independence in 1975. Cocoa production has substantially declined in recent years because of drought and mismanagement. Sao Tome has to import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods, and a substantial amount of food. Over the years, it has had difficulty servicing its external debt and has relied heavily on concessional aid and debt rescheduling. Sao Tome benefited from $200 million in debt relief in December 2000 under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program, which helped bring down the country's $300 million debt burden. In August 2005, Sao Tome signed on to a new 3-year IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) program worth $4.3 million. Considerable potential exists for development of a tourist industry, and the government has taken steps to expand facilities in recent years. The government also has attempted to reduce price controls and subsidies. Sao Tome is optimistic about the development of petroleum resources in its territorial waters in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea, which are being jointly developed in a 60-40 split with Nigeria. The first production licenses were sold in 2004, though a dispute over licensing with Nigeria delayed Sao Tome's receipt of more than $20 million in signing bonuses for almost a year. Real GDP growth exceeded 6% in 2007, as a result of increases in public expenditures and oil-related capital investment. |
| Electricity - consumption | 1.362 billion kWh (1999) | 16.74 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 1.465 billion kWh (1999) | 18 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m |
| Environment - current issues | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal | deforestation; soil erosion and exhaustion |
| 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% | mestico, angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), forros (descendants of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese) |
| Exchange rates | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate pegged to the dollar) | dobras per US dollar - 13,700 (2007), 12,050 (2006), 9,900.4 (2005), 9,902.3 (2004), 9,347.6 (2003) |
| Executive branch | 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 |
chief of state: President Fradique DE MENEZES (since 3 September 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA (since 14 February 2008) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 30 July 2006 (next to be held July 2011); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president election results: Fradique DE MENEZES elected president; percent of vote - Fradique DE MENEZES 60%, Patrice TROVOADA 38.5% |
| Exports | $376.8 million (2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
| Exports - commodities | pharmaceuticals, cement, rum, crawfish, refined petroleum products | cocoa 80%, copra, coffee, palm oil |
| Exports - partners | US 22.3%, Switzerland 15.6%, UK 15%, Denmark 7.4% (1998) | Netherlands 47.9%, Belgium 19%, Portugal 9.3% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side | three horizontal bands of green (top), yellow (double width), and green with two black five-pointed stars placed side by side in the center of the yellow band and a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.5 billion (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3% industry: 7% services: 90% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 14.8%
industry: 14.2% services: 71% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.5% (2000 est.) | 6.5% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 24 15 N, 76 00 W | 1 00 N, 7 00 E |
| Geography - note | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain | the smallest country in Africa; the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes and both are fairly mountainous |
| Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
| Highways | 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 | $1.73 billion (2000 est.) | 634.4 bbl/day (2004) |
| Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods, crude oil, vehicles, electronics | machinery and electrical equipment, food products, petroleum products |
| Imports - partners | US 27.3%, Italy 26.5%, Japan 10%, Denmark 4.2% (1998) | Portugal 48.8%, France 19.7%, Belgium 5.1%, US 5.1% (2006) |
| Independence | 10 July 1973 (from UK) | 12 July 1975 (from Portugal) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 8.5% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, banking, cement, oil refining and transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe | light construction, textiles, soap, beer, fish processing, timber |
| Infant mortality rate | 17.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 40.54 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 42.42 deaths/1,000 live births female: 38.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.9% (2000 est.) | 17% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | 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) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CPLP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ITU, ITUC, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 19 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 100 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the National Assembly) |
| Labor force | 156,000 (1999) | 35,050 (1991) |
| Labor force - by occupation | tourism 40%, other services 50%, industry 5%, agriculture 5% (1995 est.) | note: population mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing; shortages of skilled workers |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
| Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 32% other: 67% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 8.33%
permanent crops: 48.96% other: 42.71% (2005) |
| Languages | English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants) | Portuguese (official) |
| Legal system | based on English common law | based on Portuguese legal system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | 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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 26 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - MDFM-PCD 37.2%, MLSTP 28.9%, ADI 20.0%, NR 4.7%, others 9.2%; seats by party - MDFM-PCD 23, MLSTP 19, ADI 12, NR 1 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
70.46 years male: 67.27 years female: 73.71 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 67.64 years
male: 66.03 years female: 69.3 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.2% male: 98.5% female: 98% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.9% male: 92.2% female: 77.9% (2001 census) |
| Location | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida | Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
| Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 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.) |
total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 20,455 GRT/27,871 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 6 foreign-owned: 2 (Egypt 1, Greece 1) (2007) |
| Military - note | - | Sao Tome and Principe's army is a tiny force with almost no resources at its disposal and would be wholly ineffective operating unilaterally; infantry equipment is considered simple to operate and maintain but may require refurbishment or replacement after 25 years in tropical climates; poor pay, working conditions, and alleged nepotism in the promotion of officers have been problems in the past, as reflected in the 1995 and 2003 coups; these issues are being addressed with foreign assistance aimed at improving the army and its focus on realistic security concerns; command is exercised from the president, through the Minister of Defense, to the Chief of the Armed Forces staff (2005) |
| Military branches | Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Coast Guard only), Royal Bahamas Police Force | Armed Forces of Sao Tome and Principe (FASTP): Army, Coast Guard of Sao Tome e Principe (Guarda Costeira de Sao Tome e Principe, GCSTP), Presidential Guard (2007) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20 million (FY95/96) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.8% (2006) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) | Independence Day, 12 July (1975) |
| Nationality | noun:
Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian |
noun: Sao Tomean(s)
adjective: Sao Tomean |
| Natural hazards | hurricanes and other tropical storms that cause extensive flood and wind damage | NA |
| Natural resources | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land | fish, hydropower |
| Net migration rate | -2.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -2.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert Alexander INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] | Force for Change Democratic Movement or MDFM [Tome Soares da VERA CRUZ]; Independent Democratic Action or ADI [[Patrice TROVOADA]; Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Rafael BRANCO]; New Way Movement or NR; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Delfim NEVES]; Ue-Kedadji coalition; other small parties |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 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.) |
199,579 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 54% (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 3.13% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Freeport, Matthew Town, Nassau | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2001) |
| Radios | 215,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2% | Catholic 70.3%, Evangelical 3.4%, New Apostolic 2%, Adventist 1.8%, other 3.1%, none 19.4% (2001 census) |
| Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.026 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.843 male(s)/female total population: 0.976 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: adequate facilities
domestic: minimal system international: country code - 239; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 96,000 (1997) | 7,100 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 6,152 (1997) | 12,000 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 2 (2001) |
| Terrain | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills | volcanic, mountainous |
| Total fertility rate | 2.3 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.53 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 9% (1998 est.) | NA% |
| Waterways | none | - |
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