Compare Belize (2006) - El Salvador (2006)

Compare Belize (2006) z El Salvador (2006)

	Belize (2006)	El Salvador (2006)

Administrative divisions	6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo	14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, San Vicente, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, Usulutan
Age structure	0-14 years: 39.5% (male 57,923/female 55,678) 15-64 years: 57% (male 82,960/female 81,046) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 4,888/female 5,235) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 36.3% (male 1,265,080/female 1,212,216) 15-64 years: 58.5% (male 1,900,372/female 2,092,251) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 156,292/female 196,167) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments	coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; beef, dairy products; shrimp
Airports	43 (2006)	75 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2006)	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 38 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 26 (2006)	total: 71 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 56 (2006)
Area	total: 22,966 sq km land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km	total: 21,040 sq km land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Massachusetts	slightly smaller than Massachusetts
Background	Belize was the site of several Mayan city states until their decline at the end of the first millennium A.D. The British and Spanish disputed the region in the 17th and 18th centuries; it formally became the colony of British Honduras in 1854. Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. Current concerns include high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, and increasing urban crime.	El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms.
Birth rate	28.84 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	26.61 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $262 million expenditures: $329 million; including capital expenditures of $70 million (2005 est.)	revenues: $2.84 billion expenditures: $3.167 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)
Capital	name: Belmopan geographic coordinates: 17 15 N, 88 46 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: San Salvador geographic coordinates: 13 42 N, 89 12 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)	tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands
Coastline	386 km	307 km
Constitution	21 September 1981	23 December 1983
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras	conventional long form: Republic of El Salvador conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador
Death rate	5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	5.78 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$1.362 billion (June 2004 est.)	$8.087 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert J. DIETER embassy: 29 Gabourel Lane, Belize City mailing address: P. O. Box 286, Belize City telephone: [501] 227-7161 through 7163 FAX: [501] 223-0802	chief of mission: Ambassador H. Douglas BARCLAY embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 2278-4444 FAX: [503] 2278-5522
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	chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 FAX: [1] (202) 234-3834 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Elizabeth (New Jersey), Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York (2), Nogales (Arizona), Santa Ana (California), San Francisco, Washington, DC consulate(s): Boston
Disputes - international	Guatemalan squatters continue to settle in the largely uninhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; OAS seeks to revive the 2002 failed Belize-Guatemala Differendum that created a small adjustment to land boundary, a Guatemalan maritime corridor in Caribbean, joint ecological park for disputed Sapodilla Cays, and substantial US-UK financial package	in 1992, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite Organization of American States (OAS) intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca
Economic aid - recipient	$NA	$125 million of which, $53 million from US (2003)
Economy - overview	In this small, essentially private-enterprise economy the tourism industry is the number one foreign exchange earner followed by marine products, citrus, cane sugar, bananas, and garments. The government's expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, initiated in September 1998, led to sturdy GDP growth averaging nearly 5% in 1999-2005. Major concerns continue to be the sizable trade deficit and foreign debt. A key short-term objective remains the reduction of poverty with the help of international donors.	The smallest country in Central America, El Salvador has the third largest economy, but growth has been minimal in recent years. Hoping to stimulate the sluggish economy, the government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, and modernize the tax and healthcare systems. Implementation in 2006 of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement, which El Salvador was the first to ratify, is viewed as a key policy to help achieve these objectives. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - 16.6% of GDP in 2005 - and external aid. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency in 2001, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy.
Electricity - consumption	111.6 million kWh (2003)	4.45 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	91 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	473 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - production	120 million kWh (2003)	4.158 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal	deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes
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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%	mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1%
Exchange rates	Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001)	the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG, Sr. (since 17 November 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Said Wilbert MUSA (since 28 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; 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; prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister	chief of state: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single five-year term; election last held 21 March 2004 (next to be held March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (ARENA) 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL (FMLN) 35.6%, Hector SILVA (CDU-PDC) 3.9%, other 2.8%
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood	offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity
Exports - partners	US 30.6%, UK 25%, France 4.8% (2005)	US 61%, Guatemala 12.1%, Honduras 7.4%, Nicaragua 4.2% (2005)
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	three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 14.2% industry: 15.2% services: 61.2% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 9.9% industry: 30.2% services: 59.9% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.8% (2005 est.)	2.8% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	17 15 N, 88 45 W	13 50 N, 88 55 W
Geography - note	only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean	smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea
Heliports	-	1 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 1.4% highest 10%: 39.3% (2001)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trafficking and offshore sector	transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco	raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity
Imports - partners	US 31%, Mexico 11.6%, Russia 8.8%, Cuba 6%, Guatemala 5.6%, China 4.6%, Spain 4.4% (2005)	US 43.4%, Guatemala 8.2%, Mexico 7.8% (2005)
Independence	21 September 1981 (from UK)	15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate	4.6% (1999)	1.5% (2005 est.)
Industries	garment production, food processing, tourism, construction	food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals
Infant mortality rate	total: 24.89 deaths/1,000 live births male: 28.07 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 24.39 deaths/1,000 live births male: 27.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3% (2005 est.)	4.7% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	30 sq km (2003)	450 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister)	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly)
Labor force	90,000 note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2001 est.)	2.81 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 27% industry: 18% services: 55% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 17.1% industry: 17.1% services: 65.8% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 516 km border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km	total: 545 km border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km
Land use	arable land: 3.05% permanent crops: 1.39% other: 95.56% (2005)	arable land: 31.37% permanent crops: 11.88% other: 56.75% (2005)
Languages	English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole	Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians)
Legal system	English law	based on civil and Roman law with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court
Legislative branch	bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (12 members appointed by the governor general - 6 on the advice of the prime minister, 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and 1 each on the advice of the Belize Council of Churches and Evangelical Association of Churches, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Belize Better Business Bureau, and the National Trade Union Congress and the Civil Society Steering Committee; 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 5 March 2003 (next to be held March 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PUP 21, UDP 8	unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve three-year terms) elections: last held 12 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ARENA 34, FMLN 32, PCN 10, PDC 6, CD 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 68.3 years male: 66.43 years female: 70.26 years (2006 est.)	total population: 71.49 years male: 67.88 years female: 75.28 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 94.1% male: 94.1% female: 94.1% (2003 est.)	definition: age 10 and over can read and write total population: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico	Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	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 negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 285 ships (1000 GRT or over) 985,464 GRT/1,322,629 DWT by type: bulk carrier 36, cargo 203, chemical tanker 7, container 4, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 225 (China 103, Croatia 1, Cyprus 2, Estonia 3, Germany 3, Greece 2, Hong Kong 8, Iceland 2, Indonesia 2, Italy 4, Japan 2, North Korea 2, South Korea 4, Latvia 6, Lithuania 1, Malaysia 1, Mexico 1, Norway 2, Poland 2, Russia 36, Singapore 6, Spain 3, Switzerland 1, Turkey 11, UAE 5, Ukraine 7, US 5) (2006)	-
Military branches	Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard	Salvadoran Army (ES), Salvadoran Navy (FNES), Salvadoran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Salvadorena, FAS) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$19 million (2005 est.)	$161.7 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.7% (2005 est.)	1% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 21 September (1981)	Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Nationality	noun: Belizean(s) adjective: Belizean	noun: Salvadoran(s) adjective: Salvadoran
Natural hazards	frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south)	known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes
Natural resources	arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower	hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-3.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	People's United Party or PUP [Said MUSA]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Dean BARROW, party leader; Douglas SINGH, party chairman]	Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER, secretary general]; Democratic Convergence or CD (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ, coordinator general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez]; Popular Social Christian Party or PPSC [Rene AGUILUZ]; Revolutionary Democratic Front or FDR [Julio Cesar HERNANDEZ Carcamo, coordinator general]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Adele CATZIM]	labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES; Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS; National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS; National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS; Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES; Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC; Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS; Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL; business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP; Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC; Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI
Population	287,730 (July 2006 est.)	6,822,378 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	33% (1999 est.)	36.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	2.31% (2006 est.)	1.72% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 283 km narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2005)
Religions	Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Pentecostal 7.4%, Anglican 5.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Mennonite 4.1%, Methodist 3.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), other 14%, none 9.4% (2000)	Roman Catholic 83%, other 17% note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador
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: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 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: country code - 501; satellite earth station - 8 (Intelsat - 2, unknown - 6) (2005)	general assessment: NA domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: country code - 503; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System
Telephones - main lines in use	33,300 (2005)	971,500 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	93,100 (2005)	2.412 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (1997)	5 (1997)
Terrain	flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south	mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau
Total fertility rate	3.6 children born/woman (2006 est.)	3.12 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	12.9% (2003)	6.5% official rate; but the economy has much underemployment (2005 est.)
Waterways	825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2005)	Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004)

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