Compare Belize (2006) - Jamaica (2007)

Compare Belize (2006) z Jamaica (2007)

	Belize (2006)	Jamaica (2007)

Administrative divisions	6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo	14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation
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: 32.5% (male 459,968/female 444,963) 15-64 years: 60.1% (male 822,486/female 848,310) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 91,856/female 112,549) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments	sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks
Airports	43 (2006)	34 (2007)
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: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2007)
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: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 21 (2007)
Area	total: 22,966 sq km land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km	total: 10,991 sq km land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Massachusetts	slightly smaller than Connecticut
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.	The island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated, replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and a plantation economy - based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee - was established. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. The cycle of violence, drugs, and poverty has served to impoverish large sectors of the populace. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy.
Birth rate	28.84 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	20.44 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $262 million expenditures: $329 million; including capital expenditures of $70 million (2005 est.)	revenues: $3.214 billion expenditures: $3.772 billion (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: Kingston geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)	tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Coastline	386 km	1,022 km
Constitution	21 September 1981	6 August 1962
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Jamaica
Death rate	5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	6.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$1.362 billion (June 2004 est.)	$6.926 billion (2006 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 Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6 mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5 telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000 FAX: [1] (876) 702-6348
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 Gordon SHIRLEY chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York
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	none
Economic aid - recipient	$NA	$35.74 million (2005)
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 Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, was hit hard by Hurricane Ivan in late 2004, but has made a gradual recovery. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a high debt burden - the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Following a strategy begun in 2004, Jamaica has reduced its public debt to 133.3% of GDP. Inflation also had declined to 5.8% at the end of 2006. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. The government faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth.
Electricity - consumption	111.6 million kWh (2003)	6.131 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	120 million kWh (2003)	6.985 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal	heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%	black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001)	Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003), 48.416 (2002)
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood	alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels
Exports - partners	US 30.6%, UK 25%, France 4.8% (2005)	US 30.2%, Canada 15.6%, China 15.2%, UK 10.3%, Netherlands 7%, Norway 4.6% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	1 April - 31 March
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	diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 14.2% industry: 15.2% services: 61.2% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 5.4% industry: 33.8% services: 60.8% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.8% (2005 est.)	2.5% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	17 15 N, 88 45 W	18 15 N, 77 30 W
Geography - note	only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean	strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 35.8% (2004)
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 from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco	food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials
Imports - partners	US 31%, Mexico 11.6%, Russia 8.8%, Cuba 6%, Guatemala 5.6%, China 4.6%, Spain 4.4% (2005)	US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.6%, Venezuela 9.5% (2006)
Independence	21 September 1981 (from UK)	6 August 1962 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	4.6% (1999)	-2% (2000 est.)
Industries	garment production, food processing, tourism, construction	tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications
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: 15.73 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3% (2005 est.)	8.6% (2006 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	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	30 sq km (2003)	250 sq km (2002)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister)	Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Labor force	90,000 note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2001 est.)	1.249 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 27% industry: 18% services: 55% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 18.1% industry: 17.3% services: 64.6% (2004)
Land boundaries	total: 516 km border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 3.05% permanent crops: 1.39% other: 95.56% (2005)	arable land: 15.83% permanent crops: 10.01% other: 74.16% (2005)
Languages	English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole	English, English patois
Legal system	English law	based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 68.3 years male: 66.43 years female: 70.26 years (2006 est.)	total population: 73.12 years male: 71.43 years female: 74.9 years (2007 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 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.)
Location	Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico	Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
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	measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
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)	total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 161,700 GRT/241,663 DWT by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 2, carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 8, Latvia 2) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007)
Military branches	Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard	Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$19 million (2005 est.)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.7% (2005 est.)	0.6% (2006 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 21 September (1981)	Independence Day, 6 August (1962)
Nationality	noun: Belizean(s) adjective: Belizean	noun: Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican
Natural hazards	frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south)	hurricanes (especially July to November)
Natural resources	arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower	bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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]	Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Adele CATZIM]	New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
Population	287,730 (July 2006 est.)	2,780,132 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	33% (1999 est.)	14.8% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	2.31% (2006 est.)	0.777% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
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)	Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census)
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: 1.034 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.816 male(s)/female total population: 0.978 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: country code - 501; satellite earth station - 8 (Intelsat - 2, unknown - 6) (2005)	general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage; mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons; the number of fixed-lines in use has been declining international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	33,300 (2005)	319,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	93,100 (2005)	2.804 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (1997)	7 (1997)
Terrain	flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south	mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Total fertility rate	3.6 children born/woman (2006 est.)	2.36 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	12.9% (2003)	11.3% (2006 est.)
Waterways	825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2005)	-

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