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Compare Benin (2006) - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2006)
Compare Benin (2006) z Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2006)
| Benin (2006) | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2006) | |
 |  | |
| 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: 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: 26.7% (male 16,007/female 15,426)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 40,676/female 38,155) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 3,315/female 4,269) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock | bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish |
| Airports | 5 (2006) | 6 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
| 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) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
| 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. | Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on St. Vincent until 1719. Disputed between France and the United Kingdom for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. |
| Birth rate | 38.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 16.18 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $766.8 million
expenditures: $1.017 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
revenues: $94.6 million
expenditures: $85.8 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 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) |
name: Kingstown
geographic coordinates: 13 09 N, 61 14 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| 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 |
| Death rate | 12.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 5.98 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $1.6 billion (2000) | $223 million (2004) |
| 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 to 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 | 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 | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea |
| Economic aid - recipient | $342.6 million (2000) | $10.5 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (2004) |
| 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. | Economic growth in this lower-middle-income country hinges upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors. Tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994, 1995, and 2002, and tourism in the Eastern Caribbean has suffered low arrivals following 11 September 2001. Saint Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector and has moved to adopt international regulatory standards. Saint Vincent is also a producer of marijuana and is being used as a transshipment point for illegal narcotics from South America. |
| Electricity - consumption | 538.2 million kWh (2003) | 88.35 million kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - imports | 474 million kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production | 69 million kWh (2003) | 95 million kWh (2003) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: La 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
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 | black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7% |
| 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) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001) |
| 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: 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 bbl/day | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa | bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch; tennis racquets |
| Exports - partners | China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005) | France 50.3%, Italy 21%, Greece 11%, US 4.2% (2005) |
| 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 | 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 - composition by sector | agriculture: 31.6%
industry: 13.8% services: 54.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 26% services: 64% (2001 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2005 est.) | 4.9% (2005 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 |
| 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 bbl/day | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels |
| 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 36.1%, Singapore 12.5%, Italy 11.9%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.9%, US 7.2% (2005) |
| 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, construction materials, cement | food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch |
| 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: 14.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.67 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2005 est.) | 1% (2005 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 | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | 120 sq km (2003) | 10 sq km (2003) |
| 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 | 3.211 million | 41,680 (1991 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: 23.53%
permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005) |
arable land: 17.95%
permanent crops: 17.95% other: 64.1% (2005) |
| 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 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 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 7 December 2005 (next to be held 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - ULP 55.26%, NDP 44.68%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 53.04 years
male: 51.9 years female: 54.22 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 73.85 years
male: 71.99 years female: 75.77 years (2006 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 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 between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
| Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 589 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,449,699 GRT/8,051,250 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 106, cargo 351, chemical tanker 5, container 20, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 15, petroleum tanker 18, refrigerated cargo 38, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 529 (Bangladesh 1, Barbados 1, Belgium 3, Bulgaria 17, Canada 6, China 103, Croatia 9, Cyprus 1, Czech Republic registered in other countries: 1 (Comoros 1) (2006) |
| Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | no regular military forces; Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard (2005) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $100.9 million (2005 est.) | NA |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.3% (2005 est.) | NA |
| 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 | 0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -7.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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 |
New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; 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 | 7,862,944
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.) |
117,848 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 33% (2001 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | 2.73% (2006 est.) | 0.26% (2006 est.) |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) | AM 1, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004) |
| Railways | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2005) |
- |
| 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: 0.97 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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 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: adequate system
domestic: islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines international: country code - 1-784; 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 | 76,300 (2005) | 22,500 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 386,700 (2005) | 70,600 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 1 (plus three repeaters) (2004) |
| Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains | volcanic, mountainous |
| Total fertility rate | 5.2 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.83 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | 15% (2001 est.) |
| Waterways | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) | - |
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