Compare Benin (2006) - Comoros (2003)

Compare Benin (2006) z Comoros (2003)

	Benin (2006)	Comoros (2003)

Administrative divisions	12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou	3 islands; Grande Comore (Njazidja), Anjouan (Nzwani), and Moheli (Mwali); note - there are also four municipalities named Domoni, Fomboni, Moroni, and Moutsamoudou
Age structure	0-14 years: 44.1% (male 1,751,709/female 1,719,138) 15-64 years: 53.5% (male 2,067,248/female 2,138,957) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 75,694/female 110,198) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 42.9% (male 136,060; female 135,277) 15-64 years: 54.2% (male 169,121; female 173,822) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 8,863; female 9,805) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock	vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca)
Airports	5 (2006)	4 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (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 (2006)	-
Area	total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km	total: 2,170 sq km land: 2,170 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Pennsylvania	slightly more than 12 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.	Unstable Comoros has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands of Anjouan and Moheli declared their independence from Comoros. In 1999, military chief Col. AZALI seized power. He pledged to resolve the secessionist crisis through a confederal arrangement named the 2000 Fomboni Accord. In December 2001, voters approved a new constitution and presidential elections took place in the spring of 2002. Each island in the archipelago elected its own president and a new union president was sworn in on May 26, 2002.
Birth rate	38.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	38.5 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $766.8 million expenditures: $1.017 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)	revenues: $27.6 million expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital	name: Porto-Novo (official capital) geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government)	Moroni
Climate	tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north	tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)
Coastline	121 km	340 km
Constitution	December 1990	23 December 2001 note: a Transitional National Unity Government (GUNT) was formed on 20 January 2002 following the passing of the new constitution; the GUNT governed until the presidential elections on 14 April 2002
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: Union of the Comoros conventional short form: Comoros local long form: Union des Comores local short form: Comores
Currency	-	Comoran franc (KMF)
Death rate	12.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	8.86 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$1.6 billion (2000)	$232 million (2000 est.)
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 Comoros; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Comoros
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 Mahmoud M. ABOUD (ambassador to the US and Canada and permanent representative to the UN) chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of the Union of the Comoros to the United Nations, 420 East 50th Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (212) 972-8010 and 223-2711 FAX: [1] (212) 983-4712 and 715-0699
Disputes - international	Benin and Burkina Faso military clash in 2006 over sections of riverine boundary involving disputed villages and squatters; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin as a consequence of a 2004 joint task force to resolve maritime and land boundary disputes, but clashes among rival gangs along the border persist; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones	claims French-administered Mayotte
Economic aid - recipient	$342.6 million (2000)	$10 million (2001 est.)
Economy - overview	The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past six years, but rapid population growth 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. Many of these proposals are included in Benin's application to receive Millennium Challenge Account funding - for which it was a finalist in 2004-05. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. Benin continues to be hurt by Nigerian trade protection that bans imports of a growing list of products from Benin and elsewhere, which has resulted in increased smuggling and criminality in the border region.	One of the world's poorest countries, Comoros is made up of three islands that have inadequate transportation links, a young and rapidly increasing population, and few natural resources. The low educational level of the labor force contributes to a subsistence level of economic activity, high unemployment, and a heavy dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance. Agriculture, including fishing, hunting, and forestry, contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports. The country is not self-sufficient in food production; rice, the main staple, accounts for the bulk of imports. The government - which is hampered by internal political disputes - is struggling to upgrade education and technical training, to privatize commercial and industrial enterprises, to improve health services, to diversify exports, to promote tourism, and to reduce the high population growth rate. Increased foreign support is essential if the goal of 4% annual GDP growth is to be met. Remittances from 150,000 Comorans abroad help supplement GDP.
Electricity - consumption	538.2 million kWh (2003)	19.78 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	474 million kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	69 million kWh (2003)	21.27 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 90.6% hydro: 9.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m
Environment - current issues	inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification	soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on slopes without proper terracing; deforestation
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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, 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	Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava
Exchange rates	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)	Comoran francs (KMF) per US dollar - 522.74 (2002), 549.78 (2001), 533.98 (2000), 461.78 (1999), 442.46 (1998) note: prior to January 1999, the official rate was pegged to the French franc at 75 Comoran francs per French franc; since 1 January 1999, the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677 Comoran francs per euro
Executive branch	chief of state: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held March 2011) election results: YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%	chief of state: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002); note - following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in January 2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002 presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May 2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and the head of government head of government: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002); note - following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in January 2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002 presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May 2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and the head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: as defined by the 2001 constitution, the presidency rotates every four years among the elected presidents from the three main islands in the Union; election last held 14 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2007); prime minister appointed by the president; note - AZALI has not appointed a Prime Minister since he was sworn into office in May 2002 election results: President AZALI Assoumani elected president with 75% of the vote
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa	vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra
Exports - partners	China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005)	France 32.4%, Germany 19.4%, US 17.6%, Singapore 11.5%, Netherlands 6.5% (2002)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side	four equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), white, red, and blue with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist; centered within the triangle is a white crescent with the convex side facing the hoist and four white, five-pointed stars placed vertically in a line between the points of the crescent; the horizontal bands and the four stars represent the four main islands of the archipelago - Mwali, Njazidja, Nzwani, and Mayotte (a territorial collectivity of France, but claimed by Comoros); the crescent, stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $441 million (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 31.6% industry: 13.8% services: 54.6% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 40% industry: 4% services: 56% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.5% (2005 est.)	2% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	9 30 N, 2 15 E	12 10 S, 44 15 E
Geography - note	sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands	important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel
Highways	-	total: 880 km paved: 673 km unpaved: 207 km (1999 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 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 bbl/day	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products	rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods; petroleum products, cement, transport equipment
Imports - partners	France 21.8%, Ghana 7.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 7%, China 6.7%, UK 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Togo 4.5%, Thailand 4.2%, Nigeria 4% (2005)	France 34.3%, South Africa 12%, Japan 6.1%, Kenya 5.9%, UAE 5.8%, Mauritius 4.9%, Thailand 4.6% (2002)
Independence	1 August 1960 (from France)	6 July 1975 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	8.3% (2001 est.)	-2% (1999 est.)
Industries	textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement	tourism, perfume distillation
Infant mortality rate	total: 79.56 deaths/1,000 live births male: 84.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 74.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 79.51 deaths/1,000 live births male: 88.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.5% (2005 est.)	3.5% (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, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (associate), ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	1 (2000)
Irrigated land	120 sq km (2003)	NA sq km
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice	Supreme Court or Cour Supremes (two members appointed by the president, two members elected by the Federal Assembly, one elected by the Council of each island, and others are former presidents of the republic)
Labor force	3.211 million	144,500 (1996 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture 80%
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: 23.53% permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005)	arable land: 34.98% permanent crops: 17.94% other: 47.08% (1998 est.)
Languages	French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)	Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili and Arabic)
Legal system	based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	French and Sharia (Islamic) law in a new consolidated code
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 March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, Alliance MDC-PC-CPP, IPD, AFP, MDS, RDP) 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31	unicameral Assembly of the Union (30 seats; half the deputies are selected by the individual islands' local assemblies and the other half by universal suffrage; deputies serve for five years) note - elections for the former legislature, the Federal Assembly, dissolved in 1999, where held on 1 and 8 December 1996; the next elections for the Assembly of the Union were scheduled to be held in April 2003 but have yet to occur
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 53.04 years male: 51.9 years female: 54.22 years (2006 est.)	total population: 61.18 years male: 58.92 years female: 63.5 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 33.6% male: 46.4% female: 22.6% (2002 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 56.5% male: 63.6% female: 49.3% (2003 est.)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo	Southern Africa, group of islands at the northern mouth of the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 200 nm	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	-	total: 28 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 432,132 GRT/796,734 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 15, chemical tanker 1, petroleum tanker 5, refrigerated cargo 1, specialized tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Malta 1, Pakistan 1, Turkey 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force	Comoran Security Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$100.9 million (2005 est.)	$6 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.3% (2005 est.)	3% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 150,079 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 89,090 (2003 est.)
National holiday	National Day, 1 August (1960)	Independence Day, 6 July (1975)
Nationality	noun: Beninese (singular and plural) adjective: Beninese	noun: Comoran(s) adjective: Comoran
Natural hazards	hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March	cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano
Natural resources	small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber	NEGL
Net migration rate	0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD; Key Force or FC; Movement for Development and Solidarity or MDS; Movement for Development by the Culture-Salute Party-Congress of People for Progress Alliance or Alliance MDC-PS-CPP; New Alliance or NA; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [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	Forces pour l'Action Republicaine or FAR [Col. Abdourazak ABDULHAMID]; Forum pour la Redressement National or FRN (alliance of 12 parties); Front Democratique or FD [Moustoifa Said CHEIKH]; Front National pour la Justice or FNJ (Islamic party in opposition) [Ahmed RACHID]; Movement des Citoyens pour la Republique or MCR [Mahamoud MRADABI]; Mouvement Populaire Anjouanais or MPA (Anjouan separatist movement) [leader NA]; Mouvement pour la Democratie et le Progress or MDP-NGDC [Abbas DJOUSSOUF]; Movement pour le Socialisme et la Democratie or MSD (splinter group of FD) [Abdou SOEFOU]; Parti Comorien pour la Democratie et le Progress or PCDP [Ali MROUDJAE]; Rassemblement National pour le Development or RND (party of the government) [Omar TAMOU, Abdoulhamid AFFRAITANE]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	7,862,944 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 2006 est.)	632,948 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	33% (2001 est.)	60% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	2.73% (2006 est.)	2.96% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Fomboni, Moroni, Moutsamoudou
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)
Railways	total: 578 km narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)	0 km
Religions	indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%	Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 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: NA domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia	general assessment: sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communication stations domestic: HF radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay international: HF radiotelephone communications to Madagascar and Reunion
Telephones - main lines in use	76,300 (2005)	7,000 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular	386,700 (2005)	NA
Television broadcast stations	1 (2001)	NA
Terrain	mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains	volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills
Total fertility rate	5.2 children born/woman (2006 est.)	5.21 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	20% (1996 est.)
Waterways	150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)	none

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