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Compare Benin (2007) - Japan (2006)

Compare Benin (2007) z Japan (2006)

 Benin (2007)Japan (2006)
 BeninJapan
Administrative divisions 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou 47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gunma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Oita, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tokyo, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi
Age structure 0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940)


15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291)


65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 14.2% (male 9,309,524/female 8,849,476)


15-64 years: 65.7% (male 42,158,122/female 41,611,754)


65 years and over: 20% (male 10,762,585/female 14,772,150) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish
Airports 5 (2007) 175 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
total: 145


over 3,047 m: 7


2,438 to 3,047 m: 41


1,524 to 2,437 m: 39


914 to 1,523 m: 28


under 914 m: 30 (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 (2007)
total: 30


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 26 (2006)
Area total: 112,620 sq km


land: 110,620 sq km


water: 2,000 sq km
total: 377,835 sq km


land: 374,744 sq km


water: 3,091 sq km


note: includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okino-tori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto)
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Pennsylvania slightly smaller than California
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. KEREKOU stepped down at the end of his second term in 2006 and was succeeded by Thomas YAYI Boni, a political outsider and independent. In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Following the Treaty of Kanagawa with the US in 1854, Japan opened its ports and began to intensively modernize and industrialize. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and Russia. It occupied Korea, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Sakhalin Island. In 1931-32 Japan occupied Manchuria, and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of China. Japan attacked US forces in 1941 - triggering America's entry into World War II - and soon occupied much of East and Southeast Asia. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power and a staunch ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives. The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally. In 2005, Japan began a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Birth rate 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 9.37 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $786 million


expenditures: $1.024 billion (2006 est.)
revenues: $1.429 trillion


expenditures: $1.775 trillion; including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $71 billion (2005 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: Tokyo


geographic coordinates: 35 42 N, 139 46 E


time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
Coastline 121 km 29,751 km
Constitution adopted by referendum 2 December 1990 3 May 1947
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: Japan


local long form: Nihon-koku/Nippon-koku


local short form: Nihon/Nippon
Death rate 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 9.16 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $1.6 billion (2000) $1.545 trillion (31 December 2004)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Gayleatha B. BROWN


embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou


mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou


telephone: [229] 21-30-06-50


FAX: [229] 21-30-06-70
chief of mission: Ambassador J. Thomas SCHIEFFER


embassy: 1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420


mailing address: Unit 45004, Box 258, APO AP 96337-5004


telephone: [81] (03) 3224-5000


FAX: [81] (03) 3505-1862


consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo


consulate(s): Fukuoka, Nagoya
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 Ryozo KATO


chancery: 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 238-6700


FAX: [1] (202) 328-2187


consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Agana (Guam), Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, Seattle
Disputes - international two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; Benin accused Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin, but border relations remain strained by rival gang clashes; Benin and Togo announced plans in 2006 to construct a joint hydroelectric dam on the Mona River at the southern end of the border the sovereignty dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group, known in Japan as the "Northern Territories" and in Russia as the "Southern Kuril Islands," occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia and claimed by Japan, remains the primary sticking point to signing a peace treaty formally ending World War II hostilities; Japan and South Korea claim Liancourt Rocks (Take-shima/Tok-do) occupied by South Korea since 1954; China and Taiwan dispute both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon prospecting
Economic aid - donor - ODA, $8.9 billion (2004)
Economic aid - recipient $349.1 million (2005) -
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. Specific projects to improve the business climate by reforms to the land tenure system, the commercial justice system, and the financial sector were included in Benin's $307 million Millennium Challenge Account grant signed in February 2006. 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. Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) helped Japan advance with extraordinary rapidity to the rank of second most technologically powerful economy in the world after the US and the third-largest economy in the world after the US and China, measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis. One notable characteristic of the economy is how manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors work together in closely-knit groups called keiretsu. A second basic feature has been the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force. Both features are now eroding. Japan's industrial sector is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The tiny agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self sufficient in rice, Japan must import about 60% of its food on a caloric basis. Japan maintains one of the world's largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades, overall real economic growth had been spectacular - a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed markedly in the 1990s, averaging just 1.7%, largely because of the after effects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets and to force a restructuring of the economy. From 2000 to 2003, government efforts to revive economic growth met with little success and were further hampered by the slowing of the US, European, and Asian economies. In 2004 and 2005, growth improved and the lingering fears of deflation in prices and economic activity lessened. Japan's huge government debt, which totals 170% of GDP, and the aging of the population are two major long-run problems. Some fear that a rise in taxes could endanger the current economic recovery. Internal conflict over the proper way to reform the financial system will continue as Japan Post's banking, insurance, and delivery services undergo privatization between 2007 and 2017.
Electricity - consumption 587 million kWh (2005) 946.3 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports 595 million kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 105 million kWh (2005) 1.017 trillion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m
lowest point: Hachiro-gata -4 m


highest point: Mount Fuji 3,776 m
Environment - current issues inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber, contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere
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, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, 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, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Ethnic groups Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census) Japanese 99%, others 1% (Korean 511,262, Chinese 244,241, Brazilian 182,232, Filipino 89,851, other 237,914)


note: up to 230,000 Brazilians of Japanese origin migrated to Japan in the 1990s to work in industries; some have returned to Brazil (2004)
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002) yen per US dollar - 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004), 115.93 (2003), 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001)
Executive branch chief of state: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2011)


election results: Thomas YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - Thomas YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%
chief of state: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989)


head of government: Prime Minister Shinzo ABE (since 26 September 2006)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister


elections: Diet designates prime minister; constitution requires that prime minister commands parliamentary majority; following legislative elections, leader of majority party or leader of majority coalition in House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister; monarch is hereditary


election results: ABE was elected prime minister with 339 of 476 votes cast in the House of Representatives and 136 of 240 votes cast in the House of Councilors.
Exports NA bbl/day 93,360 bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals
Exports - partners China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006) US 22.9%, China 13.4%, South Korea 7.8%, Taiwan 7.3%, Hong Kong 6.1% (2005)
Fiscal year calendar year 1 April - 31 March
Flag description two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 32.8%


industry: 13.7%


services: 53.5% (2006 est.)
agriculture: 1.7%


industry: 25.8%


services: 72.5% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2006 est.) 2.6% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 9 30 N, 2 15 E 36 00 N, 138 00 E
Geography - note sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands strategic location in northeast Asia
Heliports - 15 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA% (2003)
lowest 10%: 4.8%


highest 10%: 21.7% (1993)
Illicit drugs transshipment point used by Nigerian traffickers for narcotics destined for Western Europe; vulnerable to money laundering due to poorly enforced financial regulations -
Imports NA bbl/day 5.449 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001)
Imports - partners China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006) China 21%, US 12.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, UAE 4.9%, Australia 4.7%, South Korea 4.7%, Indonesia 4% (2005)
Independence 1 August 1960 (from France) 660 B.C. (traditional founding by Emperor JIMMU)
Industrial production growth rate 8.3% (2001 est.) 1.5% (2005 est.)
Industries textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods
Infant mortality rate total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 3.24 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 3.5 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 2.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.8% (2006 est.) -0.3% (2005 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA, MIGA, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SECI (observer), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNRWA, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land 120 sq km (2003) 25,920 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet)
Labor force 3.211 million (1996) 66.4 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation - agriculture: 4.6%


industry: 27.8%


services: 67.7% (2004)
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: 11.64%


permanent crops: 0.9%


other: 87.46% (2005)
Languages French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) Japanese
Legal system based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction modeled after European civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
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 31 March 2007 (next to be held by March 2011)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FCBE 35, ADD 20, PRD 10, other and independents 18
bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (242 seats - members elected for six-year terms; half reelected every three years; 146 members in multi-seat constituencies and 96 by proportional representation) and the House of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - members elected for four-year terms; 300 in single-seat constituencies; 180 members by proportional representation in 11 regional blocs)


elections: House of Councillors - last held 11 July 2004 (next to be held in July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 11 September 2005 (next election by September 2009)


election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LDP 115, DPJ 82, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 5, others 7; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 112, DPJ 83, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 6, others 8

House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - LDP 47.8%, DPJ 36.4%, others 15.8%; seats by party - LDP 296, DPJ 113, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 24; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 294, DPJ 112, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 27 (2006)
Life expectancy at birth total population: 53.44 years


male: 52.28 years


female: 54.63 years (2007 est.)
total population: 81.25 years


male: 77.96 years


female: 84.7 years (2006 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 34.7%


male: 47.9%


female: 23.3% (2002 census)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99%


male: 99%


female: 99% (2002)
Location Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
Map references Africa Asia
Maritime claims territorial sea: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine - total: 683 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,415,892 GRT/11,765,038 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 134, cargo 30, chemical tanker 20, container 11, liquefied gas 59, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 149, petroleum tanker 156, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 51, vehicle carrier 56


registered in other countries: 2,459 (Australia 1, Bahamas 51, Belize 2, Burma 4, Cambodia 4, Cayman Islands 1, China 3, Cyprus 17, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 4, Honduras 4, Hong Kong 67, Indonesia 3, Isle of Man 4, South Korea 1, Liberia 102, Malaysia 4, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 7, Mongolia 1, Norway 1, Panama 2007, Philippines 26, Portugal 9, Singapore 100, Sweden 2, Thailand 4, Vanuatu 28, unknown 1) (2006)
Military branches Benin Armed Forces: Ground Forces Command, Benin Navy, Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2007) Japanese Defense Agency (JDA): Ground Self-Defense Force (Rikujou Jietai, GSDF), Maritime Self-Defense Force (Kaijou Jietai, MSDF), Air Self-Defense Force (Nihon Koku-Jieitai, ASDF) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $44.31 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.7% (2006) 1% (2005 est.)
National holiday National Day, 1 August (1960) Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933)
Nationality noun: Beninese (singular and plural)


adjective: Beninese
noun: Japanese (singular and plural)


adjective: Japanese
Natural hazards hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons
Natural resources small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber negligible mineral resources, fish
Net migration rate 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines - gas 8,015 km; oil 170 km; oil/gas/water 60 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD [Nicephore SOGLO]; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; 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; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU]


note: approximately 20 additional minor parties
Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Ichiro OZAWA]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII]; Komeito [Akihoro OTA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Shinzo ABE]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Mizuho FUKUSHIMA]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA NA
Population 8,078,314


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 2007 est.)
127,463,611 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line 33% (2001 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 2.674% (2007 est.) 0.02% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001)
Railways total: 758 km


narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
total: 23,556 km


standard gauge: 3,204 km 1.435-m gauge (3,204 km electrified)


narrow gauge: 77 km 1.372-m gauge (77 km electrified); 20,264 km 1.067-m gauge (13,280 km electrified); 11 km 0.762-m gauge (11 km electrified) (2005)
Religions Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census) observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female


total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female


total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 20 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line network is almost saturated with fixed-line teledensity stuck at a meager 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of roughly 10 per 100 persons


domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections; four mobile-cellular providers


international: country code - 229; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
general assessment: excellent domestic and international service


domestic: high level of modern technology and excellent service of every kind


international: country code - 81; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); submarine cables to China, Philippines, Russia, and US (via Guam) (1999)
Telephones - main lines in use 76,300 (2005) 58.78 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 750,000 (2005) 94.745 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2001) 211 plus 7,341 repeaters


note: in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999)
Terrain mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains mostly rugged and mountainous
Total fertility rate 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.4 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 4.4% (2005 est.)
Waterways 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) 1,770 km (seagoing vessels use inland seas) (2006)
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