Benin (2004) | Bahrain (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.8% (male 1,711,075; female 1,679,439)
15-64 years: 51% (male 1,802,990; female 1,890,915) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 68,890; female 96,724) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
29.6% (male 96,697; female 94,330) 15-64 years: 67.43% (male 257,360; female 177,839) 65 years and over: 2.97% (male 9,721; female 9,414) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001) | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish |
Airports | 5 (2003 est.) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
2 over 3,047 m: 2 (2000 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 (2004 est.) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
total:
620 sq km land: 620 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Possessing minimal oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining, and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir is pushing economic and political reforms, and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In 2001, the International Court of Justice awarded the Hawar Islands, long disputed with Qatar, to Bahrain. |
Birth rate | 42.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 20.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $698.9 million
expenditures: $613.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
revenues:
$1.8 billion expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government | Manama |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
Coastline | 121 km | 161 km |
Constitution | December 1990 | adopted late December 2000 (new constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) |
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:
State of Bahrain conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Dawlat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Bahraini dinar (BHD) |
Death rate | 13.69 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.6 billion (2000) | $2.7 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Johnny YOUNG embassy: #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 321, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 273-300 FAX: [973] 272-594 |
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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-0741 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and ICJ ad hoc judges have been selected to rule on disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Nigeria; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones | in March of 2001, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded the Hawar Islands to Bahrain and also adjusted Bahrain's maritime boundary with Qatar |
Economic aid - recipient | $342.6 million (2000) | $48.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged a stable 5% in the past six years, but rapid population rise has 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, while pressing for speeded-up structural reforms. | In Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil revenue granted as aid. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of both oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. |
Electricity - consumption | 631.1 million kWh (2001) | 5.752 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 376 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 274.3 million kWh (2001) | 6.185 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; no natural fresh water resources so that groundwater and sea water are the only sources for all water needs |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, 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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, 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 | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.3760 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) |
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:
Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969) head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA (2001) | $5.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa | petroleum and petroleum products 61%, aluminum 7% |
Exports - partners | China 21.1%, India 18%, Thailand 6.8%, Ghana 5.8%, Niger 4.4%, Indonesia 4.1% (2003) | India 14%, Saudi Arabia 5%, US 5%, UAE 5%, Japan 4%, South Korea 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side | red with a white serrated band (eight white points) on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $7.742 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 36.4%
industry: 14.5% services: 49.1% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
1% industry: 46% services: 53% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,900 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2003 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 9 30 N, 2 15 E | 26 00 N, 50 33 E |
Geography - note | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf which much of Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 6,787 km
paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.) |
total:
3,164 km paved: 2,433 km unpaved: 731 km note: there is a paved causeway connecting Bahrain to Saudi Arabia (1997) |
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 | NA (2001) | $4.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products | nonoil 59%, crude oil 41% |
Imports - partners | China 29.5%, France 14.9%, UK 4.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.7%, Thailand 4.6% (2003) | France 20%, US 14%, UK 8%, Saudi Arabia 7%, Japan 5% (1999) |
Independence | 1 August 1960 (from France) | 15 August 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.3% (2001 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001) | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 85.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
19.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (2003 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice | High Civil Appeals Court |
Labor force | NA (1996) | 295,000 (1998 est.)
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1% (1997 est.) |
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: 18.08%
permanent crops: 2.4% other: 79.52% (2001) |
arable land:
1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 0% other: 92% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
Legal system | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Islamic law and English common law |
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 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Presidential Movement 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31 |
unicameral National Assembly was dissolved 26 August 1975 and legislative powers were assumed by the Cabinet; appointed Advisory Council established 16 December 1992; the National Action Charter created a bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum of 14 February 2001 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 50.81 years
male: 50.25 years female: 51.39 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
73.2 years male: 70.81 years female: 75.67 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 40.9% male: 56.2% female: 26.5% (2000) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.2% male: 89.1% female: 79.4% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none | total:
7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 175,609 GRT/207,652 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 3, container 2 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force | Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $98.3 million (2003) | $318 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (2003) | 5.2% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,638,010
females age 15-49: 1,647,850 (2004 est.) |
males age 15-49:
222,141 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 835,561
females age 15-49: 835,633 (2004 est.) |
males age 15-49:
121,833 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 15 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 77,552
females: 81,841 (2004 est.) |
males:
5,926 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 1 August (1960) | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection |
Nationality | noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
noun:
Bahraini(s) adjective: Bahraini |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March | periodic droughts; dust storms |
Natural resources | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 56 km; petroleum products 16 km; natural gas 32 km |
Political parties and leaders | African Congress for Renewal or DUNYA [Saka SALEY]; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Alliance of the Social Democratic Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Coalition of Democratic Forces [Gatien HOUNGBEDJI]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Front for Renewal and Development or FARD-ALAFIA [Jerome Sakia KINA]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Bertin BORNA]; Key Force or FC [leader NA]; Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, IDP, and 4 other small parties); Renaissance Party du Benin or PRB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties |
political parties prohibited |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active |
Population | 7,250,033
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 2004 est.) |
645,361
note: includes 228,424 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 37% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.89% (2004 est.) | 1.73% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cotonou, Porto-Novo | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 338,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.45 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.29 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
general assessment:
modern system domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 66,500 (2003) | 152,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 236,200 (2003) | 58,543 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 4 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment |
Total fertility rate | 5.95 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.79 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 15% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2004) | none |