Belize (2006) | West Bank (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo | - |
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: 42.9% (male 541,110/female 515,202)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 676,427/female 644,347) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 35,440/female 47,966) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 43 (2006) | 3 (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: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (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) |
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Area | total: 22,966 sq km
land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 5,860 sq km
land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than Delaware |
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 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority (PA) as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provided that Israel would retain responsibility during the transitional period for external and internal security and for public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank began in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but were derailed by a second intifada that broke out in September 2000. In April 2003 the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement has been postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides have not followed through on their commitments. Longtime Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT died in November 2004 and Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA President in January 2005, bringing hope of a turning point in the conflict. Israel and the PA agreed in February 2005 to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments, focused on security issues, in an effort to move the peace process forward. Progress has been slow because of different interpretations of the verbal agreement by the two sides. |
Birth rate | 28.84 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 31.67 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $262 million
expenditures: $329 million; including capital expenditures of $70 million (2005 est.) |
revenues: $964 million
expenditures: $1.34 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA; note - these budget data include Gaza Strip (2004) |
Capital | name: Belmopan
geographic coordinates: 17 15 N, 88 46 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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Climate | tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May) | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters |
Coastline | 386 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 21 September 1981 | - |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
Death rate | 5.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.362 billion (June 2004 est.) | $0; note - includes Gaza Strip (2002) |
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 |
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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 |
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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 | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $1.14 billion; note - includes Gaza Strip (2004 est.) |
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 West Bank - the larger of the two areas under the Palestinian Authority (PA)- has experienced a general decline in economic growth and a degradation in economic conditions made worse since the second intifadah began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely the result of the Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant, the disruption of administrative structure, and widespread business closures. Including the Gaza Strip, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israeli settlements, or in joint industrial zones, have lost their jobs. International aid of $2 billion to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities, due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally, stymied growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 111.6 million kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 120 million kWh (2003) | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m |
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment |
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 |
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Ethnic groups | mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7% | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% |
Exchange rates | Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001) | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (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 |
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Exports | NA bbl/day | $270 million f.o.b.; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone |
Exports - partners | US 30.6%, UK 25%, France 4.8% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2004) |
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 | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 14.2%
industry: 15.2% services: 61.2% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (2005 est.) | 6.2% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 15 N, 88 45 W | 32 00 N, 35 15 E |
Geography - note | only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.) |
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 | $1.952 billion c.i.f.; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco | food, consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | US 31%, Mexico 11.6%, Russia 8.8%, Cuba 6%, Guatemala 5.6%, China 4.6%, Spain 4.4% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2004) |
Independence | 21 September 1981 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.6% (1999) | NA% |
Industries | garment production, food processing, tourism, construction | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers |
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: 19.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2005 est.) | 7% (includes Gaza Strip) (2003 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 | - |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (2003) | 150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister) | - |
Labor force | 90,000
note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2001 est.) |
614,000 (April-June 2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 27%
industry: 18% services: 55% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 18.4%
industry: 24% services: 57.6% (April-June 2005) |
Land boundaries | total: 516 km
border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km |
total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.05%
permanent crops: 1.39% other: 95.56% (2005) |
arable land: 16.9%
permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
Legal system | English 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 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.3 years
male: 66.43 years female: 70.26 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 73.27 years
male: 71.5 years female: 75.15 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 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.9% male: 96.3% female: 87.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico | Middle East, west of Jordan |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
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 |
none (landlocked) |
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) |
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Military branches | Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $19 million (2005 est.) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2005 est.) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 21 September (1981) | - |
Nationality | noun: Belizean(s)
adjective: Belizean |
noun: NA
adjective: NA |
Natural hazards | frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south) | droughts |
Natural resources | arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower | arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 2.8 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] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Adele CATZIM] | - |
Population | 287,730 (July 2006 est.) | 2,460,492
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 33% (1999 est.) | 46% including Gaza Strip (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.31% (2006 est.) | 3.06% (2006 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 20, shortwave 0 (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) | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% |
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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 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: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services in the Gaza Strip; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,300 (2005) | 357,300 (includes Gaza Strip) (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 93,100 (2005) | 1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 8 (2005) |
Terrain | flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.6 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 4.28 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12.9% (2003) | 19.9% (includes Gaza Strip) (January-September 2005) |
Waterways | 825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2005) | - |