Belize (2001) | Greenland (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.04% (male 54,876; female 52,780) 15-64 years: 54.43% (male 70,534; female 68,837) 65 years and over: 3.53% (male 4,403; female 4,632) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 24% (male 6,926/female 6,597)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 20,901/female 18,012) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 1,873/female 2,035) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coca, citrus, sugarcane; lumber; fish, cultured shrimp | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish |
Airports | 44 (2000 est.) | 14 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
40 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 29 (2000 est.) |
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
Area | total:
22,966 sq km land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly more than three times the size of Texas |
Background | Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize (formerly British Honduras) until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. The country remains plagued by high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, and increased urban crime. | Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973, but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs in consultation with Greenland's Home Rule Government. |
Birth rate | 31.69 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.01 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$157 million expenditures: $279 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $1.36 billion
expenditures: $1.27 billion (2005) |
Capital | Belmopan | name: Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates: 64 11 N, 51 45 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Greenland is divided into four time zones |
Climate | tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May) | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 386 km | 44,087 km |
Constitution | 21 September 1981 | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
Currency | Belizean dollar (BZD) | - |
Death rate | 4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.93 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $338 million (1998) | $25 million (1999) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Carolyn CURIEL embassy: 29 Gabourel Lane and Hutson Street, Belize City mailing address: P. O. Box 286, Unit 7401, APO AA 34025 telephone: [501] (2) 77161 FAX: [501] (2) 30802 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Disputes - international | Guatemala periodically asserts claims to territory in southern Belize; to deter cross-border squatting, both states in 2000 agreed to a "line of adjacency" based on the de facto boundary, which is not recognized by Guatemala | managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $512 million; note - subsidy from Denmark (2005) |
Economy - overview | The small, essentially private enterprise economy is based primarily on agriculture, agro-based industry, and merchandising, with tourism and construction assuming greater importance. Sugar, the chief crop, accounts for nearly half of exports, while the banana industry is the country's largest employer. The government's tough austerity program in 1997 resulted in an economic slowdown that continued in 1998. The trade deficit has been growing, mostly as a result of low export prices for sugar and bananas. The tourist and construction sectors strengthened in early 1999, supporting growth of 6% in 1999 and 4% in 2000. Aided by international donors, the government's key short-term objective remains the reduction of poverty. | The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and a substantial subsidy from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities are ongoing. Press reports in early 2007 indicated that two international aluminum companies were considering building smelters in Greenland to take advantage of local hydropower potential. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. Air Greenland began summer-season direct flights to the U.S. east coast in May 2007, potentially opening a major new tourism market. |
Electricity - consumption | 172.1 million kWh (1999) | 279 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 185 million kWh (1999) | 300 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
56.76% hydro: 43.24% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid waste disposal | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 43.7%, Creole 29.8%, Maya 10%, Garifuna 6.2%, other 10.3% | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000) |
Exchange rates | Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.4797 (2007), 5.9468 (2006), 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG (since 17 November 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Said MUSA (since 27 August 1998); Deputy Prime Minister John BRICENO (since 1 September 1998) 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; governor general appoints the member of the House of Representatives who is leader of the majority party to be prime minister |
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Soren MOLLER (since April 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election results: Hans ENOKSEN reelected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
Exports | $235.7 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 149.1 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
Exports - partners | US 42%, UK 33%, EU 12%, Caricom 4.8%, Canada 2%, Mexico 1% (1999) | Denmark 67.1%, Japan 12.1%, China 5.6% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | 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 | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $790 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
18% industry: 24% services: 58% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,200 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 15 N, 88 45 W | 72 00 N, 40 00 W |
Geography - note | only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap |
Highways | total:
2,872 km paved: 488 km unpaved: 2,384 km (1998 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | minor transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; minor money-laundering center | - |
Imports | $413 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | 4,013 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, manufactured goods; food, beverages, tobacco; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 58%, Mexico 12%, UK 5% EU 5%, Central America 5%, Caricom 4% (1998) | Denmark 69.9%, Sweden 16.3%, Norway 3.7% (2006) |
Independence | 21 September 1981 (from UK) | none (extensive self-rule as part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.6% (1999) | NA% |
Industries | garment production, food processing, tourism, construction | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards |
Infant mortality rate | 25.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 14.98 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2000 est.) | 1% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister) | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
Labor force | 71,000
note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (1997 est.) |
32,120 (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 38%, industry 32%, services 30% (1994) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
516 km border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 2% forests and woodland: 84% other: 3% (2000 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
Legal system | English law | the laws of Denmark, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (eight members, five appointed on the advice of the prime minister, two on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and one by the governor general; members are appointed for five-year terms); and the House of Representatives (29 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 27 August 1998 (next to be held by NA August 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - PUP 59.2%, UDP 40.8%; seats by party - PUP 26, UDP 3 |
unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 15 November 2005 (next to be held by December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 30.7%, Demokratiit 22.8%, IA 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, IA 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 13 November 2007 (next to be held in November 2011); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.19 years male: 68.91 years female: 73.57 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 70.23 years
male: 66.65 years female: 73.9 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 70.3% male: 70.3% female: 70.3% (1991 est.) note: other sources list the literacy rate as high as 75% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2001 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Arctic Region |
Maritime claims | 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 the negotiation of a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line |
Merchant marine | total:
402 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,575,851 GRT/2,241,731 DWT ships by type: bulk 27, cargo 265, chemical tanker 6, combination ore/oil 1, container 14, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 56, refrigerated cargo 18, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cuba 1, Singapore 1, US 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,422 GRT/2,340 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 1 registered in other countries: 1 (Denmark 1) (2007) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Denmark |
Military branches | Belize Defense Force (includes Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $17 million (FY98/99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.4% (FY98/99) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
62,698 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
37,174 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
2,847 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 21 September (1981) | June 21 (longest day) |
Nationality | noun:
Belizean(s) adjective: Belizean |
noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
Natural hazards | frequent, devastating hurricanes (September to December) and coastal flooding (especially in south) | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island |
Natural resources | arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, diamonds, gold, platinum, niobium, tantalite, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | People's United Party or PUP [Said MUSA]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Manuel ESQUIVEL, Dean BARROW, Doug SINGH] | Atassut Party (Solidarity) [Finn KARLSEN] (a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark); Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood) [Josef MOTZFELDT] (a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule); Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List) (an independent right-of-center party with no official platform); Siumut (Forward Party) [Hans ENOKSEN] (a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Diane HAYLOCK]; United Worker's Front | NA |
Population | 256,062 (July 2001 est.) | 56,344 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 33% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.7% (2001 est.) | -0.03% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Belize City, Big Creek, Corozol, Punta Gorda | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 133,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 30% (Anglican 12%, Methodist 6%, Mennonite 4%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Pentecostal 2%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6% (1980) | Evangelical Lutheran |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.115 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
above-average system domestic: trunk network depends primarily on microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: country code - 299; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 31,000 (1997) | 25,300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,023 (1997) | 32,200 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (plus some local low-power stations, and 3 Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) stations (1997) |
Terrain | flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
Total fertility rate | 4.05 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.4 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12.8% (1999) | 9.3% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 825 km (river network used by shallow-draft craft; seasonally navigable) | - |