Compare Bahrain (2006) - Barbados (2007)

Compare Bahrain (2006) z Barbados (2007)

	Bahrain (2006)	Barbados (2007)

Administrative divisions	5 governorates; Asamah, Janubiyah, Muharraq, Shamaliyah, Wasat note: each governorate administered by an appointed governor	11 parishes and 1 city; Bridgetown, Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas
Age structure	0-14 years: 27.4% (male 96,567/female 94,650) 15-64 years: 69.1% (male 280,272/female 202,451) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 12,753/female 11,892) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 19.7% (male 27,659/female 27,573) 15-64 years: 71.4% (male 98,633/female 102,020) 65 years and over: 8.9% (male 9,662/female 15,399) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish	sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Airports	3 (2006)	1 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Area	total: 665 sq km land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 431 sq km land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	3.5 times the size of Washington, DC	2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	In 1782, the Al Khalifa family captured Bahrain from the Persians. In order to secure these holdings, it entered into a series of treaties with the UK during the 19th century that made Bahrain a British protectorate. The archipelago attained its independence in 1971. 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. Sheikh HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa, who came to power in 1999, has pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations with the Shia community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of Sheikh HAMAD's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Sheikh HAMAD pronounced Bahrain a constitutional monarchy and changed his status from amir to king. In October 2002, Bahrainis elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral legislature, the National Assembly.	The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance.
Birth rate	17.8 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	12.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $4.662 billion expenditures: $3.447 billion; including capital expenditures of $700 million (2005 est.)	revenues: $847 million (including grants) expenditures: $886 million (2000 est.)
Capital	name: Manama geographic coordinates: 26 13 N, 50 35 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Bridgetown geographic coordinates: 13 06 N, 59 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers	tropical; rainy season (June to October)
Coastline	161 km	97 km
Constitution	new constitution 14 February 2002	30 November 1966
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: none conventional short form: Barbados
Death rate	4.14 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	8.61 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$6.814 billion (2005 est.)	$668 million (2003)
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] 1727-0547	chief of mission: Ambassador Mary M. OURISMAN embassy: U.S. Embassy, Wildey Business Park, Wildey, St. Michael mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; CMR 1014, APO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Nasir bin Muhammad al-BALUSHI chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-1111 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York consulate(s): Los Angeles
Disputes - international	none	in April 2006, the Permanent Court of Arbitration issued a decision that delimited a maritime boundary with Trinidad and Tobago and compelled Barbados to enter a fishing agreement limiting Barbadian fishermen's catches of flying fish in Trinidad and Tobago's exclusive economic zone; in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration under UNCLOS challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters; joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea
Economic aid - recipient	$150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from the UAE and Kuwait (2002)	$2.07 million (2005)
Economy - overview	Petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of Bahrain's 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. A large share of exports consists 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. In 2005 Bahrain and the US ratified a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the first FTA between the US and a Gulf state.	Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into light industry and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002-03 mainly due to a decline in tourism. Growth was positive in 2005-06, as economic conditions in the US and Europe moderately improved.
Electricity - consumption	6.83 billion kWh (2003)	886.3 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	7.345 billion kWh (2003)	953 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 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	pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers
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	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6% (2001 census)	black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6%
Exchange rates	Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2005), 0.376 (2004), 0.376 (2003), 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001)	Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002)
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 1971); Deputy Prime Ministers ALI bin Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, MUHAMMAD bin Mubarak al-Khalifa, Jawad al-ARAIDH cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 7 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) 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; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles	sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
Exports - partners	Saudi Arabia 3.3%, US 2.6%, UAE 2.3% (2005)	US 27.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 15%, UK 10.2%, Saint Lucia 7%, Jamaica 6.5%, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4.3% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 April - 31 March
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	three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 0.5% industry: 38.7% services: 60.8% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 6% industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.9% (2005 est.)	3.5% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	26 00 N, 50 33 E	13 10 N, 59 32 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	easternmost Caribbean island
Heliports	1 (2006)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	-	one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	crude oil, machinery, chemicals	consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners	Saudi Arabia 36.4%, Japan 6.6%, Germany 6.4%, US 5.4%, UK 5%, UAE 4.1% (2005)	US 37.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 22.6%, UK 5.9% (2006)
Independence	15 August 1971 (from UK)	30 November 1966 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	2% (2000 est.)	-3.2% (2000 est.)
Industries	petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, offshore banking, ship repairing, tourism	tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Infant mortality rate	total: 16.8 deaths/1,000 live births male: 19.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 11.55 deaths/1,000 live births male: 12.88 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.7% (2005 est.)	-0.5% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	40 sq km (2003)	50 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	High Civil Appeals Court	Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services); Caribbean Court of Justice is the highest court of appeal
Labor force	380,000 note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2005 est.)	128,500 (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 1% industry: 79% services: 20% (1997 est.)	agriculture: 10% industry: 15% services: 75% (1996 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 2.82% permanent crops: 5.63% other: 91.55% (2005)	arable land: 37.21% permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (2005)
Languages	Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu	English
Legal system	based on Islamic law and English common law	English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
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 in September 2006) election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Sunni Islamists 12, Shia grouping 7, other groupings and independents 21 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	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21 seats; members appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 74.45 years male: 71.97 years female: 77 years (2006 est.)	total population: 73 years male: 71.02 years female: 75.01 years (2007 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 has ever attended school total population: 99.7% male: 99.7% female: 99.7% (2002 est.)
Location	Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia	Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Map references	Middle East	Central America and the Caribbean
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: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 235,449 GRT/339,728 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Kuwait 3) (2006)	total: 71 ships (1000 GRT or over) 539,579 GRT/793,899 DWT by type: bulk carrier 13, cargo 39, chemical tanker 6, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 67 (Bahamas, The 1, Canada 9, Greece 11, India 1, Lebanon 1, Monaco 1, Norway 35, Sweden 5, UK 3) registered in other countries: 1 (St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007)
Military - note	-	the Royal Barbados Defense Force includes a land-based Troop Command and a small Coast Guard; the primary role of the land element is to defend the island against external aggression; the Command consists of a single, part-time battalion with a small regular cadre that is deployed throughout the island; it increasingly supports the police in patrolling the coastline to prevent smuggling and other illicit activities (2005)
Military branches	Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, National Guard	Royal Barbados Defense Force: Troops Command, Barbados Coast Guard (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$627.7 million (2005 est.)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	4.9% (2005 est.)	0.5% (2006 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	Independence Day, 30 November (1966)
Nationality	noun: Bahraini(s) adjective: Bahraini	noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial) adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
Natural hazards	periodic droughts; dust storms	infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides
Natural resources	oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls	petroleum, fish, natural gas
Net migration rate	0.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 20 km; oil 52 km (2006)	-
Political parties and leaders	political parties prohibited but political societies were legalized per a July 2005 law	Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]; People's Empowerment Party or PEP [David COMISSIONG]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97 and have recently engaged in protests and marches, demanding that more power be vested in the elected Council of Representatives and that the government do more to decrease unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active	Barbados Secondary Teachers' Union or BSTU [Patrick FROST]; Barbados Union of Teachers or BUT [Herbert GITTENS]; Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados or CTUSAB, which includes the BWU, NUPW, BUT, and BSTU [Leroy TROTMAN]; Barbados Workers Union or BWU [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMISSIONG]; National Union of Public Workers [Joseph GODDARD]
Population	698,585 note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2006 est.)	280,946 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA%
Population growth rate	1.45% (2006 est.)	0.369% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Muslim (Shi'a and Sunni) 81.2%, Christian 9%, other 9.8% (2001 census)	Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.38 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female total population: 1.26 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.003 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.967 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.627 male(s)/female total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 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 - 1 (1997)	general assessment: fixed-line teledensity of roughly 50 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 75 per 100 persons domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-246; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; satellite earth stations - 1 (Intelsat -Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	196,500 (2005)	134,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	748,700 (2005)	206,200 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	4 (1997)	1 (plus 2 cable channels) (2004)
Terrain	mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment	relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region
Total fertility rate	2.6 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.65 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	15% (2005 est.)	10.7% (2003 est.)

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