Benin (2002) | Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 12 provinces; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Couffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.2% (male 1,616,138; female 1,585,463)
15-64 years: 50.5% (male 1,665,439; female 1,764,966) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 65,877; female 89,742) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001) | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts |
Airports | 5 (2001) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
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Area | total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | Dahomey gained its independence from France in 1960; the name was changed to Benin in 1975. From 1974 to 1989 the country was a socialist state; free elections were reestablished in 1991. | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. |
Birth rate | 43.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $377.4 million
expenditures: $561.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
Capital | Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government | West Island |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year |
Coastline | 121 km | 26 km |
Constitution | December 1990 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 14.52 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.18 billion (2000) | NA |
Dependency status | - | territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela E. BRIDGEWATER
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70 |
none (territory of Australia) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN
chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996 |
none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | Benin and Niger have refered to the ICJ the dispute over l'Ete and 14 smaller disputed islands in the Niger River, which has never been delimited; with Nigeria, several villages are in dispute along the Okpara River and only 35 km of the 436 km boundary are demarcated; the Benin-Niger-Nigeria tripoint remains undemarcated; Benin accuses Togo of moving boundary markers and stationing troops in its territory; two villages are in dispute with Burkina Faso | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $342.6 million (2000) | NA |
Economy - overview | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output averaged a stable 5% in the past five years, but rapid population rise offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. The 2001 privatization policy should continue in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of initial government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation. | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. |
Electricity - consumption | 523.2 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | - |
Electricity - imports | 300 million kWh (2000) | - |
Electricity - production | 240 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 17%
hydro: 83% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 | Europeans, Cocos Malays |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419 (2003), 1.9354 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; runoff election held 22 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Mathieu KEREKOU reelected president; percent of vote - Mathieu KEREKOU 84.1%, Bruno AMOUSSOU 15.9% note: the four top-ranking contenders following the first-round presidential elections were: Mathieu KEREKOU (incumbent) 45.4%, Nicephore SOGOLO (former president) 27.1%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI (National Assembly Speaker) 12.6%, and Bruno AMOUSSOU (Minister of State) 8.6%; the second-round balloting, originally scheduled for 18 March 2001, was postponed four days because both SOGOLO and HOUNGBEDJI withdrew alleging electoral fraud; this left KEREKOU to run against his own Minister of State, AMOUSSOU, in what was termed a "friendly match" |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Evan WILLIAMS (since 1 November 2003) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | $35.3 million f.o.b. (2000) | NA |
Exports - commodities | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa | copra |
Exports - partners | Brazil, France, Indonesia, Thailand, Morocco, Portugal, Cote d'Ivoire (2001) | Australia |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side | the flag of Australia is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $6.8 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - NA |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 36%
industry: 14% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,040 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - NA |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2001 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 9 30 N, 2 15 E | 12 30 S, 96 50 E |
Geography - note | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation |
Highways | total: 6,787 km
paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,430 km (1997 est.) |
total: 15 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (2003) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure | - |
Imports | $437.6 million c.i.f. (2000) | NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products | foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France, US, China, Cote d'Ivoire, Netherlands, Japan (2001) | Australia |
Independence | 1 August 1960 (from France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.3% (2001 est.) | NA |
Industries | textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001) | copra products and tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 88.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2001 est.) | NA |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2002) | - |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court |
Labor force | NA | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | - | the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others |
Land boundaries | total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 15.28%
permanent crops: 1.36% other: 83.36% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) | Malay (Cocos dialect), English |
Legal system | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 March 1999 (next to be held 30 March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RB 27, PRD 11, FARD-ALAFIA 10, PSD 9, MADEP 6, Alliance E'toile 4, IPD 4, other 12 |
unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.69 years
male: 48.81 years female: 50.61 years (2002 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 37.5% male: 52.2% female: 23.6% (2000) |
- |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Nigeria and Togo | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 NM | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory does have a five-person police force |
Military branches | Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force), National Gendarmerie | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $27 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY96) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,509,760
females age 15-49: 1,536,036 note: both sexes are liable for military service (2002 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 771,373
females age 15-49: 778,730 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 71,278
females: 70,088 (2002 est.) |
- |
National holiday | National Day, 1 August (1960) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March | cyclone season is October to April |
Natural resources | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber | fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Alliance of the Social Democratic Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Front for Renewal and Development or FARD-ALAFIA [Saka SALEY]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Bertin BORNA]; Movement for Citizens' Commitment and Awakening or MERCI [Severin ADJOVI]; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties; the Coalition of Democratic Forces, [Gatien HOUNGBEDJI], an alliance of parties and organizations supporting President KEREKOU |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 6,787,625
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.) |
629 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 37% (2001 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.91% (2002 est.) | 0.002% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cotonou, Porto-Novo | none; lagoon anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 660,000 (2000) | - |
Railways | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2000 est.) |
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Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); submarine cable |
general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61-891; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 satellite earth station of NA type (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,000 (2000) | 287 (1992) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 55,500 (2000) | note - analog cellular service available |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | NA |
Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains | flat, low-lying coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 6.14 children born/woman (2002 est.) | NA children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 60% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | streams navigable along small sections, important only locally | - |