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Compare Belize (2006) - Reunion (2003)

Compare Belize (2006) z Reunion (2003)

 Belize (2006)Reunion (2003)
 BelizeReunion
Administrative divisions 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons
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: 31.3% (male 121,119; female 115,501)


15-64 years: 62.8% (male 233,607; female 240,502)


65 years and over: 5.9% (male 18,036; female 26,406) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn
Airports 43 (2006) 2 (2002)
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: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 38


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 26 (2006)
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Area total: 22,966 sq km


land: 22,806 sq km


water: 160 sq km
total: 2,517 sq km


land: 2,507 sq km


water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Massachusetts slightly smaller than Rhode Island
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 Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.
Birth rate 28.84 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) 20.17 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues: $262 million


expenditures: $329 million; including capital expenditures of $70 million (2005 est.)
revenues: $1.26 billion


expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998)
Capital name: Belmopan


geographic coordinates: 17 15 N, 88 46 W


time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Saint-Denis
Climate tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May) tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April
Coastline 386 km 207 km
Constitution 21 September 1981 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Belize


former: British Honduras
conventional long form: Department of Reunion


conventional short form: Reunion


local long form: none


local short form: Ile de la Reunion


former: Bourbon Island
Currency - euro (EUR)
Death rate 5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $1.362 billion (June 2004 est.) $NA
Dependency status - overseas department of France
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
none (overseas department of France)
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 (overseas department of France)
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 $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France
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 economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.
Electricity - consumption 111.6 million kWh (2003) 1.005 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 120 million kWh (2003) 1.08 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 55.5%


hydro: 44.5%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal NA
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
-
Ethnic groups mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7% French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian
Exchange rates Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001) euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998)
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 Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA)


head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)


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 the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
Exports NA bbl/day NA (2001)
Exports - commodities sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993)
Exports - partners US 30.6%, UK 25%, France 4.8% (2005) France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000)
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 the flag of France is used
GDP - purchasing power parity - $4.174 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 14.2%


industry: 15.2%


services: 61.2% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 8%


industry: 19%


services: 73% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 3.8% (2005 est.) 2.5% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 17 15 N, 88 45 W 21 06 S, 55 36 E
Geography - note only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean
Highways - total: 2,724 km


paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road)


unpaved: 1,424 km (1994)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
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 -
Imports NA bbl/day NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products
Imports - partners US 31%, Mexico 11.6%, Russia 8.8%, Cuba 6%, Guatemala 5.6%, China 4.6%, Spain 4.4% (2005) France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000)
Independence 21 September 1981 (from UK) none (overseas department of France)
Industrial production growth rate 4.6% (1999) NA%
Industries garment production, food processing, tourism, construction sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction
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: 8.13 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 8.89 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 7.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3% (2005 est.) NA%
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 FZ, InOC, WFTU
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 30 sq km (2003) 120 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister) Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel
Labor force 90,000


note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2001 est.)
309,900 (2000)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 27%


industry: 18%


services: 55% (2001 est.)
agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000)
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: 13.2%


permanent crops: 2%


other: 84.8% (1998 est.)
Languages English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole French (official), Creole widely used
Legal system English law French law
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 General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)


elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); 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 - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5


note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1
Life expectancy at birth total population: 68.3 years


male: 66.43 years


female: 70.26 years (2006 est.)
total population: 73.43 years


male: 70.03 years


female: 77 years (2003 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 can read and write


total population: 88.9%


male: 87%


female: 90.8% (2003 est.)
Location Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references Central America and the Caribbean World
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
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 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 - note - defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $19 million (2005 est.) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.7% (2005 est.) -
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 198,341 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 101,116 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 6,795 (2003 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 21 September (1981) Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality noun: Belizean(s)


adjective: Belizean
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)


adjective: Reunionese
Natural hazards frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south) periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano
Natural resources arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower fish, arable land, hydropower
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 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] Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]
Political pressure groups and leaders Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Adele CATZIM] NA
Population 287,730 (July 2006 est.) 755,171 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 33% (1999 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 2.31% (2006 est.) 1.47% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors - Le Port, Pointe des Galets
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001)
Railways - 0 km
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 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995)
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: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 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: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis


domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network


international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 33,300 (2005) 268,500 (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular 93,100 (2005) 197,000 (September 2000)
Television broadcast stations 2 (1997) 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001)
Terrain flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast
Total fertility rate 3.6 children born/woman (2006 est.) 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 12.9% (2003) 36% (1999 est.)
Waterways 825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2005) none
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