Compare Bahamas, The (2008) - Tonga (2007)

Compare Bahamas, The (2008) z Tonga (2007)

	Bahamas, The (2008)	Tonga (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	3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u
Age structure	0-14 years: 27% (male 41,268/female 41,186) 15-64 years: 66.5% (male 99,961/female 103,230) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 8,176/female 11,834) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 34.6% (male 20,624/female 19,779) 15-64 years: 61.2% (male 35,551/female 36,052) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,087/female 2,828) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	citrus, vegetables; poultry	squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish
Airports	62 (2007)	6 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 24 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2007)	total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 22 (2007)	total: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Area	total: 13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km	total: 748 sq km land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Connecticut	four 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 Europe, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US.	Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific.
Birth rate	17.3 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	23.67 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.03 billion expenditures: $1.03 billion (FY04/05)	revenues: $56.97 million expenditures: $83.88 million (FY04/05)
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 second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November	name: Nuku'alofa geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream	tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December)
Coastline	3,542 km	419 km
Constitution	10 July 1973	4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967
Country name	conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas	conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga conventional short form: Tonga local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands
Death rate	9.13 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$342.6 million (2004 est.)	$80.7 million (2004)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Ned L. SIEGEL 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, 356-3229 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222	the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Cornelius A. SMITH chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco
Disputes - international	disagrees with the US on the alignment of a potential maritime boundary; continues to monitor and interdict drug dealers and Haitian refugees in Bahamian waters	none
Economic aid - recipient	$4.78 million (2004)	$31.75 million (2005)
Economy - overview	The Bahamas is one of the wealthiest Caribbean countries 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 tourist arrivals have been on the decline since 2006. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy and, when combined with business services, account for about 36% 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 combined 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. Tourism, in turn, depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors.	Tonga has a small, open, South Pacific island economy. It has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government.
Electricity - consumption	1.762 billion kWh (2005)	32.55 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	1.894 billion kWh (2005)	35 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m
Environment - current issues	coral reef decay; solid waste disposal	deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%	Polynesian, Europeans
Exchange rates	Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003)	pa'anga per US dollar - 2.0277 (2006), 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003), 2.1952 (2002)
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 Hubert A. INGRAHAM (since 4 May 2007) 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: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; four appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including two each from the nobles' and peoples' representatives serving three-year terms note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the monarch
Exports	transshipments of 41,290 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables	squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops
Exports - partners	Spain 22.3%, US 19.8%, Poland 13.5%, Germany 13%, UK 5.7%, Guatemala 4.9% (2006)	US 39.7%, Japan 27.8%, NZ 8.2%, South Korea 7.6% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side	red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3% industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 23% industry: 27% services: 50% (FY03/04 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2.8% (2007 est.)	2.4% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	24 15 N, 76 00 W	20 00 S, 175 00 W
Geography - note	strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited	archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited)
Heliports	1 (2007)	-
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	-
Imports	68,250 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals	foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners	US 24.7%, Brazil 15.7%, Japan 13.1%, South Korea 7.8%, Spain 6.2% (2006)	Fiji 30.3%, NZ 27.7%, US 8.2%, Australia 7.5%, France 5.7%, UK 4.7% (2006)
Independence	10 July 1973 (from UK)	4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	1% (2003 est.)
Industries	tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe	tourism, fishing
Infant mortality rate	total: 24.17 deaths/1,000 live births male: 29.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 11.99 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.4% (2007 est.)	11.1% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)	ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	10 sq km (2003)	NA
Judicial branch	Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme (lower) Court; magistrates courts	Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council)
Labor force	181,900 (2006)	33,910 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 65% industry and services: 35% (1997 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0.58% permanent crops: 0.29% other: 99.13% (2005)	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005)
Languages	English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)	Tongan, English
Legal system	based on English common law	based on English common law
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16 seats; members appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader to serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (41 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 2 May 2007 (next to be called by May 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - FNM 49.86%, PLP 47.02%; seats by party - FNM 23, PLP 18	unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms) elections: last held on 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%, other 30%; seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 65.66 years male: 62.37 years female: 69.02 years (2007 est.)	total population: 70.12 years male: 67.6 years female: 72.76 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: can read and write Tongan and/or English total population: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 est.)
Location	Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba	Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Merchant marine	total: 1,213 ships (1000 GRT or over) 40,403,455 GRT/54,276,183 DWT by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 225, cargo 240, chemical tanker 84, combination ore/oil 13, container 72, liquefied gas 49, livestock carrier 2, passenger 117, passenger/cargo 34, petroleum tanker 196, refrigerated cargo 118, roll on/roll off 18, specialized tanker 4, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 39 foreign-owned: 1,134 (Angola 6, Australia 3, Belgium 15, Bermuda 12, Brazil 1, Canada 13, China 9, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 20, Denmark 66, Finland 8, France 43, Germany 40, Greece 214, Hong Kong 3, Iceland 1, Indonesia 3, Ireland 2, Italy 1, Japan 62, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Malaysia 11, Monaco 11, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 232, Philippines 1, Poland 15, Russia 5, Saudi Arabia 15, Singapore 9, Slovenia 1, South Africa 1, Spain 11, Sweden 5, Switzerland 2, Taiwan 1, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Turkey 5, UAE 20, UK 68, US 162, Uruguay 1, Venezuela 1) registered in other countries: 3 (Barbados 1, Panama 2) (2007)	total: 14 ships (1000 GRT or over) 58,756 GRT/67,889 DWT by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 9, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Australia 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2007)
Military branches	Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Land Force, Navy, Air Wing (2007)	Tonga Defense Services: Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.5% (2006)	0.9% (2006 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 10 July (1973)	Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970)
Nationality	noun: Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian	noun: Tongan(s) adjective: Tongan
Natural hazards	hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage	cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou
Natural resources	salt, aragonite, timber, arable land	fish, fertile soil
Net migration rate	-2.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]	People's Democratic Party [Tesina FUKO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE]
Population	305,655 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 2007 est.)	116,921 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	9.3% (2004)	24% (FY03/04)
Population growth rate	0.602% (2007 est.)	1.847% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2006)	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)
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 (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.002 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.968 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.691 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 0.993 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	21 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern facilities domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed; the Bahamas Domestic Submarine Network links 14 of the islands and is designed to satisfy increasing demand for voice and broadband internet services international: country code - 1-242; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic submarine cable that provides links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station - 2 (2007)	general assessment: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television domestic: fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004)
Telephones - main lines in use	133,100 (2005)	13,700 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	227,800 (2005)	29,900 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (2006)	3 (2004)
Terrain	long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills	most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base
Total fertility rate	2.15 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	7.6% (2006 est.)	13% (FY03/04 est.)

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