Bahrain (2004) | French Guiana (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.4% (male 97,179; female 95,043)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 271,015; female 192,342) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 11,426; female 10,881) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.6% (male 28,959; female 27,657)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 66,388; female 57,020) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 5,736; female 5,549) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 4 (2003 est.) | 11 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 2 1524 to 2437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir, installed in 1999, has pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of the amir's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa proclaimed himself king. In October 2002, Bahrainis elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
Birth rate | 18.54 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 21 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.981 billion
expenditures: $3.019 billion, including capital expenditures of $700 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
Capital | Manama | Cayenne |
Climate | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 161 km | 378 km |
Constitution | adopted late December 2000; Bahrani voters approved on 13-14 February 2001 a referendum on legislative changes (revised constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Bahrain
conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | Bahraini dinar (BHD) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 4.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4.82 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.682 billion (2003) | $1.2 billion (1988) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William T. MONROE
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 331, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 1724-2700 FAX: [973] 1725-6242 (consular) |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador KHALIFA bin ALI bin Rashid Al Khalifa
chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-1111 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) |
Economic aid - recipient | $150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from each of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait (2002) | NA (1995) |
Economy - overview | In well-to-do Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil granted as aid. A large share of exports consist of petroleum products made from refining imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. | The economy is tied closely to the larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.819 billion kWh (2001) | 423.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 6.257 billion kWh (2001) | 455 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
Environment - current issues | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2003), 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001), 0.376 (2000), 0.376 (1999) | Euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969)
head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | US 3.5%, India 3.3%, South Korea 2.2% (2003) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red, the traditional color for flags of Persian Gulf states, with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $11.29 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.7%
industry: 42.1% services: 57.2% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,900 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2003 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 26 00 N, 50 33 E | 4 00 N, 53 00 W |
Geography - note | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 3,261 km
paved: 2,531 km unpaved: 730 km (2000) |
total: 722 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | crude oil, machinery, chemicals | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 30.7%, US 11.4%, Japan 7.8%, UK 5.7%, Germany 5.4% (2003) | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.) |
Independence | 15 August 1971 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | NA |
Industries | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 17.91 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 12.46 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.2% (2003 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | UPU, WCL, WFTU |
Irrigated land | 50 sq km (1998 est.) | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Civil Appeals Court | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 350,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2003 est.) |
58,800 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1%, industry, commerce, and services 79%, government 20% (1997 est.) | agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63% other: 91.55% (2001) |
arable land: 0.14%
permanent crops: 0.05% other: 99.81% (90% forest, 10% other) (2001) |
Languages | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu | French |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and English common law | French legal system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of Shura Council (40 members appointed by the King) and House of Deputies (40 members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Deputies - last held 31 October 2002 (next election to be held NA 2006) election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - independents 21, Sunni Islamists 9, other 10 note: first elections since 7 December 1973; unicameral National Assembly dissolved 26 August 1975; National Action Charter created bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum 14 February 2001; first legislative session of Parliament held on 25 December 2002 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.98 years
male: 71.52 years female: 76.51 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 76.89 years
male: 73.57 years female: 80.38 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.1% male: 91.9% female: 85% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | Middle East | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 219,083 GRT/312,638 DWT
by type: bulk 3, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Hong Kong 1, Kuwait 1 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, National Guard | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $618.1 million (2003) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 7.5% (2003) | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 221,661 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 52,294 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 121,484 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 33,914 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 6,396 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; dust storms | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay |
Net migration rate | 1.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 20 km; oil 53 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | political parties prohibited but politically oriented societies are allowed | Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Paul DEBRIETTE]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active | NA |
Population | 677,886
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2004 est.) |
191,309 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.56% (2004 est.) | 2.25% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Religions | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.41 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.05 male(s)/female total population: 1.27 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern system
domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 973; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 185,800 (2003) | 51,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 443,100 (2003) | 138,200 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1997) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.67 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.05 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1998 est.) | 22% (2001) |
Waterways | - | 3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2004) |