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Compare British Virgin Islands (2004) - Guatemala (2008)
Compare British Virgin Islands (2004) z Guatemala (2008)
| British Virgin Islands (2004) | Guatemala (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 22 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan, Zacapa |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.5% (male 2,402; female 2,361)
15-64 years: 73.5% (male 8,395; female 7,911) 65 years and over: 5% (male 594; female 524) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 40.8% (male 2,641,179/female 2,556,397)
15-64 years: 55.5% (male 3,426,376/female 3,642,157) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 213,801/female 248,201) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish | sugarcane, corn, bananas, coffee, beans, cardamom; cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens |
| Airports | 3 (2003 est.) | 402 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 12
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 390
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 82 under 914 m: 301 (2007) |
| Area | total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada |
total: 108,890 sq km
land: 108,430 sq km water: 460 sq km |
| Area - comparative | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Tennessee |
| Background | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. | The Mayan civilization flourished in Guatemala and surrounding regions during the first millennium A.D. After almost three centuries as a Spanish colony, Guatemala won its independence in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century, it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments, as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. In 1996, the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the conflict, which had left more than 100,000 people dead and had created, by some estimates, some 1 million refugees. |
| Birth rate | 14.96 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 29.09 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997) |
revenues: $4.301 billion
expenditures: $5.219 billion (2007 est.) |
| Capital | Road Town | name: Guatemala
geographic coordinates: 14 37 N, 90 31 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in April; ends last Friday in September; note - there is no DST planned for 2007-2009 |
| Climate | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds | tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands |
| Coastline | 80 km | 400 km |
| Constitution | 1 June 1977 | 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; note - suspended 25 May 1993 by former President Jorge SERRANO; reinstated 5 June 1993 following ouster of president; amended November 1993 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
conventional long form: Republic of Guatemala
conventional short form: Guatemala local long form: Republica de Guatemala local short form: Guatemala |
| Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
| Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 5.27 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $36.1 million (1997) | $5.561 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
| Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador James M. DERHAM
embassy: 7-01 Avenida Reforma, Zone 10, Guatemala City mailing address: APO AA 34024 telephone: [502] 2326-4000 FAX: [502] 2326-4654 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Guillermo CASTILLO
chancery: 2220 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 745-4952 FAX: [1] (202) 745-1908 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Providence, San Francisco |
| Disputes - international | none | annual ministerial meetings under the OAS-initiated Agreement on the Framework for Negotiations and Confidence Building Measures continue to address Guatemalan land and maritime claims in Belize and the Caribbean Sea; the Line of Adjacency created under the 2002 Differendum serves in lieu of the contiguous international boundary to control squatting in the sparsely inhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; Mexico must deal with thousands of impoverished Guatemalans and other Central Americans who cross the porous border looking for work in Mexico and the United States |
| Economic aid - recipient | NA | $253.6 million (2005 est.) |
| Economy - overview | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. | Guatemala is the most populous of the Central American countries with a GDP per capita roughly one-half that of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. The agricultural sector accounts for about one-fourth of GDP, two-fifths of exports, and half of the labor force. Coffee, sugar, and bananas are the main products, with sugar exports benefiting from increased global demand for ethanol. The 1996 signing of peace accords, which ended 36 years of civil war, removed a major obstacle to foreign investment, and Guatemala since then has pursued important reforms and macroeconomic stabilization. On 1 July 2006, the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) entered into force between the US and Guatemala and has since spurred increased investment in the export sector. The distribution of income remains highly unequal with about 56% of the population below the poverty line. Other ongoing challenges include increasing government revenues, negotiating further assistance from international donors, upgrading both government and private financial operations, curtailing drug trafficking and rampant crime, and narrowing the trade deficit. Given Guatemala's large expatriate community in the United States, it is the top remittance recipient in Central America, with inflows serving as a primary source of foreign income equivalent to nearly two-thirds of exports. |
| Electricity - consumption | 35.43 million kWh (2001) | 6.361 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 339 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 23 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 38.1 million kWh (2001) | 7.281 billion kWh (2005) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Volcan Tajumulco 4,211 m |
| Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) | deforestation in the Peten rainforest; soil erosion; water pollution |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: 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, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed | Mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) and European 59.4%, K'iche 9.1%, Kaqchikel 8.4%, Mam 7.9%, Q'eqchi 6.3%, other Mayan 8.6%, indigenous non-Mayan 0.2%, other 0.1% (2001 census) |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | quetzales per US dollar - 7.6833 (2007), 7.6026 (2006), 7.6339 (2005), 7.9465 (2004), 7.9409 (2003) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President Alvaro COLOM Caballeros (since 14 January 2008); Vice President Rafael ESPADA (since 14 January 2008); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Alvaro COLOM Caballeros (since 14 January 2008); Vice President Rafael ESPADA (since 14 January 2008) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held 9 September 2007; runoff held 4 November 2007 (next to be held September 2011) election results: Alvaro COLOM Caballeros elected president; percent of vote - Alvaro COLOM Caballeros 52.8%, Otto PEREZ Molina 47.2% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | 15,560 bbl/day (2006 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand | coffee, sugar, petroleum, apparel, bananas, fruits and vegetables, cardamom |
| Exports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | US 44.6%, El Salvador 11.9%, Honduras 7.2%, Mexico 5.2% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
| Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) | three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side), white, and light blue with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles and a pair of crossed swords and framed by a wreath |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $320 million (2002 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 13.8%
industry: 27.9% services: 58.3% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2002 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 5.6% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 30 N, 64 30 W | 15 30 N, 90 15 W |
| Geography - note | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico | no natural harbors on west coast |
| Highways | total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% (2002) |
| Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering | major transit country for cocaine and heroin; in 2005, cultivated 100 hectares of opium poppy after reemerging as a potential source of opium in 2004; potential production of less than 1 metric ton of pure heroin; marijuana cultivation for mostly domestic consumption; proximity to Mexico makes Guatemala a major staging area for drugs (particularly for cocaine); money laundering is a serious problem; corruption is a major problem |
| Imports | NA (2001) | 72,960 bbl/day (2006 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery | fuels, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, grain, fertilizers, electricity |
| Imports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | US 33.2%, Mexico 8.8%, China 6.5%, El Salvador 5.3%, South Korea 4.9% (2006) |
| Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA | 5.9% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center | sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 18.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 29.77 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.26 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2002) | 6.6% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMEE, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,300 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction | Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitutcionalidad is Guatemala's highest court (five judges are elected for concurrent five-year terms); Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (13 members serve concurrent five-year terms and elect a president of the Court each year from among their number; the president of the Supreme Court of Justice also supervises trial judges around the country, who are named to five-year terms) |
| Labor force | 4,911 (1980) | 3.958 million (2007 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA | agriculture: 50%
industry: 15% services: 35% (1999 est.) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,687 km
border countries: Belize 266 km, El Salvador 203 km, Honduras 256 km, Mexico 962 km |
| Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2001) |
arable land: 13.22%
permanent crops: 5.6% other: 81.18% (2005) |
| Languages | English (official) | Spanish 60%, Amerindian languages 40% (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca) |
| Legal system | English law | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5 |
unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica (158 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 September 2007 (next to be held in September 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - UNE 30.4%, GANA 23.4%, PP 18.9%, FRG 9.5%, PU 5.1%, other 12.7%; seats by party - UNE 48, GANA 37, PP 30, FRG 15, PU 8, CASA 5, EG 4, PAN 4, UCN 4, URNG 2, UD 1 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.27 years
male: 75.24 years female: 77.36 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 69.69 years
male: 67.94 years female: 71.52 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 69.1% male: 75.4% female: 63.3% (2002 census) |
| Location | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,825 GRT/155,909 DWT
by type: cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Norway 1 registered in other countries: 32 (2004 est.) |
- |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
| Military branches | - | Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.4% (2006) |
| National holiday | Territory Day, 1 July | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
| Nationality | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
noun: Guatemalan(s)
adjective: Guatemalan |
| Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) | numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms |
| Natural resources | NEGL | petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower |
| Net migration rate | 10.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -2.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | oil 480 km (2007) |
| Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] | Center of Social Action or CASA [Eduardo SUGER]; Democracy Front or FRENTE [Alfonso CABRERA]; Democratic Union or UD [Manuel CONDE Orellana]; Encounter for Guatemala or EG [Nineth MONTENGRO]; Grand National Alliance or GANA [Alfredo VILLA]; Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity or URNG [Hector NUILA]; Guatemalan Republican Front or FRG [Efrain RIOS Montt]; National Advancement Party or PAN [Ruben Dario MORALES]; National Unity for Hope or UNE [Alvaro COLOM Caballeros]; Patriot Party or PP [Ret. Gen. Otto PEREZ Molina]; Unionista Party or PU [Fritz GARCIA]; Unity of National Change or UCN [Sidney SHAW] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Agrarian Owners Group or UNAGRO; Alliance Against Impunity or AAI; Committee for Campesino Unity or CUC; Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial, and Financial Associations or CACIF; Mutual Support Group or GAM |
| Population | 22,187 (July 2004 est.) | 12,728,111 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA | 56.2% (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.06% (2004 est.) | 2.152% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Road Town | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 130, FM 487, shortwave 15 (2000) |
| Railways | - | total: 886 km
narrow gauge: 886 km 0.914-m gauge (2006) |
| Religions | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) | Roman Catholic, Protestant, indigenous Mayan beliefs |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.033 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.941 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.861 male(s)/female total population: 0.974 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; note - active duty members of the armed forces may not vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day |
| Telephone system | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda |
general assessment: fairly modern network centered in the city of Guatemala
domestic: state-owned telecommunications company privatized in the late 1990s opening the way for competition; fixed-line teledensity 11 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity approaching 60 per 100 persons international: country code - 502; landing point for both the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the SAM-1 fiber optic submarine cable system that together provide connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 11,700 (2002) | 1.355 million (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,000 (2002) | 7.179 million (2006) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) | 26 (plus 27 repeaters) (1997) |
| Terrain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly | mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau |
| Total fertility rate | 1.72 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.7 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 3% (1995) | 3.2% (2005 est.) |
| Waterways | - | 990 km
note: 260 km navigable year round; additional 730 km navigable during high-water season (2007) |
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