Compare Bahamas, The (2005) - Belize (2007)

Compare Bahamas, The (2005) z Belize (2007)

	Bahamas, The (2005)	Belize (2007)

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, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay	6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo
Age structure	0-14 years: 27.9% (male 42,142/female 42,096) 15-64 years: 65.9% (male 97,865/female 101,047) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 7,616/female 11,024) (2005 est.)	0-14 years: 38.9% (male 58,459/female 56,183) 15-64 years: 57.5% (male 85,686/female 83,717) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 4,979/female 5,361) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	citrus, vegetables; poultry	bananas, cacao, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments
Airports	63 (2004 est.)	44 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 29 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 34 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)	total: 40 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 27 (2007)
Area	total: 13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km	total: 22,966 sq km land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Connecticut	slightly smaller than Massachusetts
Background	Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. 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.	Belize was the site of several Mayan city states until their decline at the end of the first millennium A.D. The British and Spanish disputed the region in the 17th and 18th centuries; it formally became the colony of British Honduras in 1854. Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. Current concerns include an unsustainable foreign debt, high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, growing urban crime, and increasing incidences of HIV/AIDS.
Birth rate	17.87 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	28.34 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1 billion expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY03/04)	revenues: $302.6 million expenditures: $324.9 million (2006 est.)
Capital	Nassau	name: Belmopan geographic coordinates: 17 15 N, 88 46 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream	tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)
Coastline	3,542 km	386 km
Constitution	10 July 1973	21 September 1981
Country name	conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras
Death rate	8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	5.76 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$308.5 million (2002)	$1.2 billion (June 2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ROOD embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert J. DIETER embassy: Floral Park Road, Belmopan City, Cayo District mailing address: 3050 Belize Place, Washington DC 20521-3050 telephone: [501] 822-4011 FAX: [501] 822-4012
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: Ambassador Lisa M. SHOMAN chancery: 2535 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-9636 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6888 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
Disputes - international	have not been able to agree on the alignment of a maritime boundary with the US; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability	annual ministerial meetings under the OAS-initiated Agreement on the Framework for Negotiations and Confidence Building Measures continue to address Guatemalan land and maritime claims in Belize and Caribbean Sea; the Line of Adjacency created under the 2002 Differendum serves in lieu of the contiguous international boundary to control squatting in the sparsely inhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; Honduras claims Belizean-administered Sapodilla Cays in its constitution but agreed to a joint ecological park under the Differendum
Economic aid - recipient	$9.8 million (1995)	$NA (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 half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. In addition to tourism and banking, the government supports the development of a "third pillar," e-commerce.	In this small, essentially private-enterprise economy tourism is the number one foreign exchange earner followed by exports of marine products, citrus, cane sugar, bananas, and garments. The government's expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, initiated in September 1998, led to sturdy GDP growth averaging nearly 4% in 1999-2006. Major concerns continue to be the sizable trade deficit and unsustainable foreign debt. The government in 2006 announced it would seek a restructuring of its sovereign debt and has been negotiating with international creditors to find an acceptable formula for doing so. A key short-term objective remains the reduction of poverty with the help of international donors.
Electricity - consumption	1.596 billion kWh (2002)	162.8 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	1.716 billion kWh (2002)	175 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m
Environment - current issues	coral reef decay; solid waste disposal	deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%	mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%
Exchange rates	Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000)	Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) 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; 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; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG, Sr. (since 17 November 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Said Wilbert MUSA (since 28 August 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Vildo MARIN (since 5 June 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; 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; prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports	transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003)	1,960 bbl/day (2006)
Exports - commodities	mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals; fruit and vegetables	sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood
Exports - partners	US 40.2%, Poland 13.3%, Spain 11.6%, Germany 5.9%, France 4.3% (2004)	US 33.9%, UK 33.6%, Cote d'Ivoire 3.7% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side	blue with a narrow red stripe along the top and the bottom edges; centered is a large white disk bearing the coat of arms; the coat of arms features a shield flanked by two workers in front of a mahogany tree with the related motto SUB UMBRA FLOREO (I Flourish in the Shade) on a scroll at the bottom, all encircled by a green garland
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3% industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 22.5% industry: 14.8% services: 62.6% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	3% (2004 est.)	3.5% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	24 15 N, 76 00 W	17 15 N, 88 45 W
Geography - note	strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited	only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean
Heliports	1 (2004 est.)	-
Highways	total: 2,693 km paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: 27% (2000)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center	transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis, primarily for local consumption; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trafficking and offshore sector
Imports	NA	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals	machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco
Imports - partners	US 22.4%, South Korea 18.9%, Brazil 9.2%, Japan 7.9%, Italy 7.8%, Venezuela 6.6% (2004)	US 35.7%, Mexico 13%, Cuba 7.7%, Guatemala 7.2%, China 4.3% (2006)
Independence	10 July 1973 (from UK)	21 September 1981 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	4.6% (1999)
Industries	tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe	garment production, food processing, tourism, construction, oil
Infant mortality rate	total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births male: 31.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 24.38 deaths/1,000 live births male: 27.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.2% (year ending September 2004)	4.3% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	30 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts	Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister)
Labor force	156,000 (1999)	113,000 note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (1999 est.)	agriculture: 22.5% industry: 15.2% services: 62.3% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 516 km border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km
Land use	arable land: 0.8% permanent crops: 0.4% other: 98.8% (2001)	arable land: 3.05% permanent crops: 1.39% other: 95.56% (2005)
Languages	English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)	Spanish 46%, Creole 32.9%, Mayan dialects 8.9%, English 3.9% (official), Garifuna 3.4% (Carib), German 3.3%, other 1.4%, unknown 0.2% (2000 census)
Legal system	based on English common law	English law
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); the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4	bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (12 seats; members appointed by the governor general - 6 on the advice of the prime minister, 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and 1 each on the advice of the Belize Council of Churches and Evangelical Association of Churches, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Belize Better Business Bureau, and the National Trade Union Congress and the Civil Society Steering Committee; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives (29 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - number of seats will increase to 31 next election elections: House of Representatives - last held 5 March 2003 (next to be held in March 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PUP 21, UDP 8
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 65.54 years male: 62.11 years female: 69.04 years (2005 est.)	total population: 68.25 years male: 66.44 years female: 70.16 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 76.9% male: 76.7% female: 77.1% (2000 census)
Location	Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba	Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 1,119 by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 183, cargo 259, chemical tanker 54, combination ore/oil 17, container 74, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, passenger 116, passenger/cargo 40, petroleum tanker 168, refrigerated cargo 130, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 24 foreign-owned: 968 (Angola 4, Australia 4, Belgium 17, Canada 9, China 3, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 18, Estonia 1, Finland 7, France 28, Germany 15, Greece 194, Hong Kong 11, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 1, Italy 7, Japan 49, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 15, Netherlands 24, New Zealand 1, Nigeria 2, Norway 229, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 12, Serbia & Montenegro 2, Singapore 11, Slovenia 1, South Korea 1, Spain 6, Sweden 9, Switzerland 4, Thailand 1, Trinidad & Tobago 2, Turkey 7, UAE 12, United Kingdom 55, United States 154, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 35 (2005)	total: 261 ships (1000 GRT or over) 940,852 GRT/1,275,111 DWT by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 36, cargo 190, chemical tanker 5, container 5, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 217 (China 107, Croatia 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 1, Hong Kong 5, Iceland 1, Italy 4, Japan 2, South Korea 4, Latvia 14, Norway 3, Peru 1, Philippines 1, Russia 39, Singapore 3, Spain 2, Turkey 11, Ukraine 10, UAE 4, US 3) (2007)
Military branches	Royal Bahamaian Defense Force (naval forces) (2004)	Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	1.4% (2006)
National holiday	Independence Day, 10 July (1973)	Independence Day, 21 September (1981)
Nationality	noun: Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian	noun: Belizean(s) adjective: Belizean
Natural hazards	hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage	frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south)
Natural resources	salt, aragonite, timber, arable land	arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower
Net migration rate	-2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]	National Alliance for Belizean Rights or NABR; National Reform Party or NRP [Cornelius DUECK]; People's United Party or PUP [Said MUSA]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Dean BARROW]; Vision Inspired by the People or VIP [Paul MORGAN]; We the People Reform Movement [Hipolito BAUTISTA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Gustavo PERERA]; Association of Concerned Belizeans or ACB [David VASQUEZ]; National Trade Union Congress of Belize or NTUC/B [Rene GOMEZ]
Population	301,790 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.)	294,385 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	33.5% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	0.67% (2005 est.)	2.258% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)	AM 1, FM 16, shortwave 0 (2006)
Religions	Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census)	Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Pentecostal 7.4%, Anglican 5.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Mennonite 4.1%, Methodist 3.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), other 14%, none 9.4% (2000)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.024 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.929 male(s)/female total population: 1.027 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: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997)	general assessment: above-average system; fixed-line teledensity of 12 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of about 40 per 100 persons domestic: trunk network depends primarily on microwave radio relay international: country code - 501; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station - 8 (Intelsat - 2, unknown - 6) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	131,700 (2003)	33,900 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	121,800 (2002)	118,300 (2006)
Television broadcast stations	2 (2004)	5 (2006)
Terrain	long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills	flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south
Total fertility rate	2.2 children born/woman (2005 est.)	3.52 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	10.2% (2004 est.)	9.4% (2006)
Waterways	-	825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2007)

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