Compare Benin (2004) - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2002)

Compare Benin (2004) z Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2002)

	Benin (2004)	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2002)

Administrative divisions	12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou	6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick
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: 28.9% (male 17,093; female 16,497) 15-64 years: 64.8% (male 38,718; female 36,689) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 3,188; female 4,209) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products	cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001)	bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish
Airports	5 (2003 est.)	6 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
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 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Area	total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km	total: 389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Pennsylvania	twice 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.	Disputed between France and the United Kingdom in the 18th century, Saint Vincent was ceded to the latter in 1783. Autonomy was granted in 1969, and independence in 1979.
Birth rate	42.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	17.54 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget	revenues: $698.9 million expenditures: $613.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)	revenues: $94.6 million expenditures: $85.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) (2000 est.)
Capital	Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government	Kingstown
Climate	tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north	tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)
Coastline	121 km	84 km
Constitution	December 1990	27 October 1979
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: none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Currency	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Death rate	13.69 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.12 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external	$1.6 billion (2000)	$167.2 million (2000) (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	the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
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 Ellsworth I. A. JOHN chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736 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	none
Economic aid - recipient	$342.6 million (2000)	$47.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (1998) (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.	Bananas and other agricultural products remain the staple of this lower-middle income country's economy. Although tourism and other services have been growing moderately in recent years, the government has been ineffective at introducing new industries. Unemployment remains high, and economic growth hinges upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors. Tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994 and 1995, and tourism in the Eastern Caribbean has suffered low arrivals following September 11. St. Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector, but its restrictive secrecy laws have come under international review. As of June 2001, it remained on the Financial Action Task Force's list of noncooperative jurisdictions.
Electricity - consumption	631.1 million kWh (2001)	76.3 million 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)	82 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 73% hydro: 27% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Soufriere 1,234 m
Environment - current issues	inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification	pollution of coastal waters and shorelines from discharges by pleasure yachts and other effluents; in some areas, pollution is severe enough to make swimming prohibitive
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, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups	African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500	black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7%
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)	East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)
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 Governor General Sir Fredrick Nathaniel BALLANTYNE (since 2 September 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Ralph E. GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
Exports	NA (2001)	$53.7 million (2000 est.)
Exports - commodities	cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa	bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch, tennis racquets
Exports - partners	China 21.1%, India 18%, Thailand 6.8%, Ghana 5.8%, Niger 4.4%, Indonesia 4.1% (2003)	Caricom countries 49%, UK 16%, US 10% (1995)
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	three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern
GDP	purchasing power parity - $7.742 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $339 million (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 36.4% industry: 14.5% services: 49.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 10% industry: 26% services: 64% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.5% (2003 est.)	-0.8% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates	9 30 N, 2 15 E	13 15 N, 61 12 W
Geography - note	sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands	the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays
Highways	total: 6,787 km paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.)	total: 1,040 km paved: 320 km unpaved: 720 km (1996)
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	transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; small-scale cannabis cultivation
Imports	NA (2001)	$185.6 million (2000 est.)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products	foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels
Imports - partners	China 29.5%, France 14.9%, UK 4.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.7%, Thailand 4.6% (2003)	US 36%, Caricom countries 28%, UK 13% (1995)
Independence	1 August 1960 (from France)	27 October 1979 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	8.3% (2001 est.)	-0.9% (1997 est.)
Industries	textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001)	food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch
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.)	16.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.5% (2003 est.)	-0.4% (2001 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	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	15 (2000)
Irrigated land	120 sq km (1998 est.)	10 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)
Labor force	NA (1996)	67,000 (1984 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture 26%, industry 17%, services 57% (1980 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: 10.26% permanent crops: 17.95% other: 71.79% (1998 est.)
Languages	French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)	English, French patois
Legal system	based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on 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 House of Assembly (21 seats, 15 elected representatives and 6 appointed senators; representatives are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 28 March 2001 (next to be held by March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 50.81 years male: 50.25 years female: 51.39 years (2004 est.)	total population: 72.82 years male: 71.07 years female: 74.63 years (2002 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 has ever attended school total population: 96% male: 96% female: 96% (1970 est.)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo	Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Map references	Africa	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 200 nm	contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	none	total: 788 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,000,660 GRT/10,702,776 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 142, cargo 382, chemical tanker 24, combination bulk 11, combination ore/oil 3, container 47, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 48, refrigerated cargo 39, roll on/roll off 52, short-sea passenger 13, specialized tanker 10, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Albania 1, Anguilla 1, Argentina 1, Australia 2, Bahamas, The 1, Bangladesh 1, Barbados 2, Belgium 4, Bulgaria 14, Canada 1, Cayman Islands 1, China 135, Colombia 1, Croatia 12, Cyprus 6, Denmark 16, Egypt 7, Estonia 6, France 27, Germany 12, Greece 156, Guyana 7, Hong Kong 23, Iceland 1, India 11, Indonesia 3, Israel 2, Italy 19, Japan 1, Kenya 4, Latvia 5, Lebanon 9, Liberia 5, Lithuania 1, Malta 1, Man, Isle of 1, Marshall Islands 3, Mexico 1, Monaco 6, Netherlands 14, Netherlands Antilles 1, Nigeria 3, Norway 33, Pakistan 5, Panama 2, Poland 2, Portugal 2, Puerto Rico 2, Russia 8, Saint Kitts and Nevis 1, Saudi Arabia 3, Singapore 4, Slovenia 7, South Korea 4, Spain 1, Sweden 6, Switzerland 10, Syria 2, Taiwan 1, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Tunisia 1, Turkey 15, Ukraine 8, United Arab Emirates 45, United Kingdom 16, United States 25, Vietnam 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force	Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$98.3 million (2003)	$NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.7% (2003)	NA%
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 1,638,010 females age 15-49: 1,647,850 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 835,561 females age 15-49: 835,633 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 77,552 females: 81,841 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	National Day, 1 August (1960)	Independence Day, 27 October (1979)
Nationality	noun: Beninese (singular and plural) adjective: Beninese	noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian
Natural hazards	hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March	hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat
Natural resources	small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber	hydropower, cropland
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-7.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
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	National Reform Party or NRP [Joel MIGUEL]; New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; People's Progressive Movement or PPM [Ken BOYEA]; Progressive Labor Party or PLP [leader NA]; United People's Movement or UPM [Adrian SAUNDERS]; Unity Labor Party or ULP [Ralph GONSALVES] (formed by the coalition of Saint Vincent Labor Party or SVLP and the Movement for National Unity or MNU)
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
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.)	116,394 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line	37% (2001 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.89% (2004 est.)	0.37% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors	Cotonou, Porto-Novo	Kingstown
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)	AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios	-	77,000 (1997)
Railways	total: 578 km narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)	0 km
Religions	indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%	Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, Hindu Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
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: adequate system domestic: islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines international: VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to Barbados; new SHF radiotelephone to Grenada and to Saint Lucia; access to Intelsat earth station in Martinique through Saint Lucia
Telephones - main lines in use	66,500 (2003)	20,500 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular	236,200 (2003)	NA
Television broadcast stations	1 (2001)	1 (plus three repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains	volcanic, mountainous
Total fertility rate	5.95 children born/woman (2004 est.)	2.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA	22% (1997 est.) (1997 est.)
Waterways	150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2004)	none

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