Compare Bahamas, The (2006) - Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

Compare Bahamas, The (2006) z Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

	Bahamas, The (2006)	Sao Tome and Principe (2004)

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	2 provinces; Principe, Sao Tome note: Principe has had self-government since 29 April 1995
Age structure	0-14 years: 27.5% (male 41,799/female 41,733) 15-64 years: 66.1% (male 98,847/female 102,074) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 7,891/female 11,426) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 47.7% (male 43,810; female 42,708) 15-64 years: 48.4% (male 42,469; female 45,456) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 3,275; female 3,847) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	citrus, vegetables; poultry	cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish
Airports	64 (2006)	2 (2003 est.)
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 (2006)	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 22 (2006)	-
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	Lucayan 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.	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. Although independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. Though the first free elections were held in 1991, the political environment has been one of continued instability with frequent changes in leadership and coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea is likely to have a significant impact on the country's economy.
Birth rate	17.57 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	41.36 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.03 billion expenditures: $1.03 billion; including capital expenditures of $130 million (FY04/05)	revenues: $38.59 million expenditures: $42.04 million, including capital expenditures of $54 million (2003 est.)
Capital	name: Nassau geographic coordinates: 25 05 N, 77 21 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October	Sao Tome
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	-	dobra (STD)
Death rate	9.05 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	6.89 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$342.6 million (2004 est.)	$318 million (2002)
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; US Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) 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: vacant chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York	Sao Tome and Principe does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a Permanent Mission to the UN, headed by First Secretary Domingos Augusto FERREIRA, located at 400 Park Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10022, telephone [1] (212) 317-0580
Disputes - international	disagrees with the US on the alignment of the maritime boundary; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability	none
Economic aid - recipient	$5 million (2004)	$200 million in December 2000 under the HIPC program
Economy - overview	The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven construction and manufacturing accounts for approximately 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. The current government has presided over a period of economic recovery and an upturn in large-scale private sector investments in tourism. 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.	This small poor island economy has become increasingly dependent on cocoa since independence 29 years ago. Cocoa production has substantially declined in recent years because of drought and mismanagement, but strengthening prices helped boost export earnings in 2003. Sao Tome has to import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods, and a substantial amount of food. Over the years, it has been unable to service its external debt and has had to depend 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. Sao Tome's success in implementing structural reforms has been rewarded by international donors, who pledged increased assistance in 2001. 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; production could begin as early as 2004.
Electricity - consumption	1.683 billion kWh (2003)	15.81 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	1.81 billion kWh (2003)	17 million kWh (2001)
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, 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 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 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001)	dobras per US dollar - 9,347.58 (2003), 9,088.32 (2002), 8,842.11 (2001), 7,978.17 (2000), 7,118.96 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Arthur D. HANNA (since 1 February 2006) 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: President Fradique DE MENEZES (since 3 September 2001) head of government: Prime Minister Damiao Vaz DE ALMEIDA (since 17 September 2004) 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; election last held 29 July 2001 (next to be held NA July 2006); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president election results: Fradique DE MENEZES elected president in Sao Tome's third multiparty presidential election; percent of vote - NA%
Exports	transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables	cocoa 80%, copra, coffee, palm oil
Exports - partners	US 31%, Spain 29.7%, Poland 9.3%, Germany 5.6%, Guatemala 4.1% (2005)	Netherlands 41.7%, Canada 16.7%, Belgium 8.3%, Germany 8.3%, Philippines 8.3% (2003)
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 - $214 million (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3% industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 19.6% industry: 17.8% services: 62.6% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $1,200 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.7% (2005 est.)	5% (2003 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 of which 30 are inhabited	the smallest country in Africa; the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes and both are fairly mountainous
Heliports	1 (2006)	-
Highways	-	total: 320 km paved: 218 km unpaved: 102 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: 27%	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center	-
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals	machinery and electrical equipment, food products, petroleum products
Imports - partners	US 22.5%, South Korea 20.2%, Spain 7.8%, Brazil 7.1%, Italy 6.5%, Germany 5.4% (2005)	Portugal 51.6%, Germany 11.3%, Italy 6.5%, Belgium 4.8%, Netherlands 4.8% (2003)
Independence	10 July 1973 (from UK)	12 July 1975 (from Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	NA
Industries	tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe	light construction, textiles, soap, beer; fish processing; timber
Infant mortality rate	total: 24.68 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 44.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 46.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 42.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.2% ( 2004)	9% (2003 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, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Irrigated land	10 sq km (2003)	100 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme (lower) Court; magistrates courts	Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the National Assembly)
Labor force	176,300 (2004)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (2005 est.)	population mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing note: shortages of skilled workers
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0.58% permanent crops: 0.29% other: 99.13% (2005)	arable land: 6.25% permanent crops: 48.96% other: 44.79% (2001)
Languages	English (official), 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); 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	unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 3 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - MLSTP 39.6%, Force for Change Democratic Movement 39.4%, Ue-Kedadji coalition 16.2%; seats by party - MLSTP 24, Force for Change Democratic Movement 23, Ue-Kedadji coalition 8
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 65.6 years male: 62.24 years female: 69.03 years (2006 est.)	total population: 66.63 years male: 65.11 years female: 68.21 years (2004 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: 79.3% male: 85% female: 62% (1991 est.)
Location	Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba	Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 1,177 ships (1000 GRT or over) 37,743,270 GRT/50,918,747 DWT by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 253, cargo 250, chemical tanker 64, container 79, liquefied gas 35, livestock carrier 2, passenger 115, passenger/cargo 34, petroleum tanker 175, refrigerated cargo 114, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 30 foreign-owned: 1,093 (Angola 5, Australia 2, Belgium 13, Canada 18, China 3, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 59, Estonia 1, Finland 8, France 37, Germany 22, Greece 232, Hong Kong 8, Iceland 1, India 1, Indonesia 4, Ireland 2, Israel 1, Italy 5, Japan 51, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 17, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 259, Philippines 1, Poland 15, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 12, Singapore 12, Slovenia 1, Spain 12, Sweden 6, Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, Turkey 8, UAE 16, UK 69, Uruguay 2, US 121, Venezuela 1) registered in other countries: 4 (Barbados 1, Liberia 1, Panama 2) (2006)	total: 24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 79,490 GRT/97,077 DWT by type: bulk 2, cargo 14, chemical tanker 2, livestock carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: British Virgin Islands 1, Egypt 1, Greece 1, Lebanon 1, Portugal 1, Ukraine 2 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Marines, Air Wing (2006)	Army, Coast Guard, Presidential Guard, National Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	$500,000 (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	0.8% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 38,347 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 20,188 (2004 est.)
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 cause extensive flood and wind damage	NA
Natural resources	salt, aragonite, timber, arable land	fish, hydropower
Net migration rate	-2.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-2.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]	Democratic Renovation Party [Armindo GRACA]; Force for Change Democratic Movement [leader NA]; Independent Democratic Action or ADI [Carlos NEVES]; Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Manuel Pinto Da COSTA]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Aldo BANDEIRA]; Ue-Kedadji coalition [leader NA]; other small parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	303,770 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.)	181,565 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	9.3% (2004)	54% NA (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	0.64% (2006 est.)	3.18% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Santo Antonio, Sao Tome
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2006)	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2002)
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)	Christian 80% (Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, Seventh-Day Adventist)
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 (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 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 - 2 (2005)	general assessment: adequate facilities domestic: minimal system international: country code - 239; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	139,900 (2004)	7,000 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	186,000 (2004)	4,800 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	2 (2006)	2 (2002)
Terrain	long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills	volcanic, mountainous
Total fertility rate	2.18 children born/woman (2006 est.)	5.8 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	10.2% (2005 est.)	NA

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