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Compare Benin (2008) - New Caledonia (2003)
Compare Benin (2008) z New Caledonia (2003)
| Benin (2008) | New Caledonia (2003) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
| 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: 29.7% (male 31,990; female 30,695)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 68,093; female 67,205) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 6,016; female 6,799) (2003 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products |
| Airports | 5 (2007) | 30 (2002) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 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 (2007) |
total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
| Area | total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
| 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. YAYI has begun a high profile fight against corruption and has strongly promoted accelerating Benin's economic growth. | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s seems to have dissipated. |
| Birth rate | 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 19.45 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $936.9 million
expenditures: $1.226 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 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) |
Noumea |
| Climate | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
| Coastline | 121 km | 2,254 km |
| Constitution | adopted by referendum 2 December 1990 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
| 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: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
| Currency | - | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
| Death rate | 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Debt - external | $1.2 billion (2007) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
| Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1956 |
| 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] 21-30-03-84 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
| 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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
| 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 | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
| Economic aid - recipient | $374.7 million (2006) | $880 million annual subsidy from France |
| 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 seven 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 though the government annulled the privatization of Benin's state cotton company in November 2007 after the discovery of irregularities in the bidding process. 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. An insufficient electrical supply continues to adversely affect Benin's economic growth though the government recently has taken steps to increase domestic power production. | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than one-fourth of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. |
| Electricity - consumption | 587 million kWh (2005) | 1.5 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 595 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 105 million kWh (2005) | 1.613 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 76.3%
hydro: 23.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
| Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
| 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 |
- |
| 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) | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
| Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 135.04 (January 2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998) |
| 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: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Pierre FROGIER (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 28 November 2002 when Pierre FROGIER was reelected |
| Exports | 0 bbl/day (2007) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
| Exports - partners | China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006) | Japan 20.6%, France 20.4%, Taiwan 16.3%, South Africa 11.3%, Spain 7.7%, South Korea 5.4%, Australia 5.4%, Italy 5.3% (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 | the flag of France is used |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $3 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 33.2%
industry: 14.5% services: 52.3% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $14,000 (2002 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.5% (2007 est.) | NA |
| Geographic coordinates | 9 30 N, 2 15 E | 21 30 S, 165 30 E |
| Geography - note | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls |
| Heliports | - | 5 (2002) |
| Highways | - | total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 29% (2003) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| 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 | 16,830 bbl/day (2007 est.) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006) | France 52.8%, Australia 12.7%, Singapore 9.8% (2002) |
| Independence | 1 August 1960 (from France) | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
| Industrial production growth rate | 4.5% (2007 est.) | -0.6% (1996) |
| Industries | textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement | nickel mining and smelting |
| 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: 8.06 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2007 est.) | -0.6% (2000 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, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WFTU, WMO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 120 sq km (2003) | 160 sq km (1991) |
| Judicial branch | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
| Labor force | 5.38 million (2007 est.) | 79,395 (including 15,018 unemployed, 1996) |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 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: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
| Legal system | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French 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 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 |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR 24, FLNKS 12, UNI 6, FCCI 4, FN 4, Alliance pour la Caledonie 3, LKS 1 note: New Caledonia elects 1 seat to the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 53.44 years
male: 52.28 years female: 54.63 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 73.52 years
male: 70.57 years female: 76.62 years (2003 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: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
| Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
| Map references | Africa | Oceania |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Malaysia 1 (2002 est.) |
| Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
| Military branches | Benin Armed Forces (FAB): Army (l'Arme de Terre), Benin Navy (Forces Navales Beninois, FNB), Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2008) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $192.3 million (FY96) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2006) | 5.3% (FY96) |
| National holiday | National Day, 1 August (1960) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
| Nationality | noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
| Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
| Natural resources | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
| Net migration rate | 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Benin Renaissance or RB [Rosine SOGLO]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Theophile NATA]; Key Force or FC [Lazare SÈHOUÉTO]; Movement for the People's Alternative or MAP [Olivier CAPO-CHICHI]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Dominique HOUNGNINOU]; Social Democrat Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Union for the Relief or UPR [Issa SALIFOU]; Union for Democracy and National Solidarity or UDS [Sacca LAFIA]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties |
Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR [Jacques LAFLEUR]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
| 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.) |
210,798 (July 2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 37.4% (2007 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | 2.674% (2007 est.) | 1.38% (2003 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Mueo, Noumea, Thio |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 34, shortwave 1 (2007) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 758 km
narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
0 km |
| 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) | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
| 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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 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 subscribership is increasing
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: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 77,300 (2006) | 47,000 (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.056 million (2006) | 13,040 (1998) |
| Television broadcast stations | 6 (2007) | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
| Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains | coastal plains with interior mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.39 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | 19% (1996) |
| Waterways | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) | none |
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