Brunei (2001) | Lesotho (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts (daerah-daerah, singular - daerah); Belait, Brunei and Muara, Temburong, Tutong | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
30.77% (male 53,977; female 51,772) 15-64 years: 66.52% (male 121,601; female 107,007) 65 years and over: 2.71% (male 4,449; female 4,847) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 39% (male 433,229; female 427,926)
15-64 years: 56.3% (male 600,476; female 642,538) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 43,691; female 60,094) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, vegetables, fruits, chickens, water buffalo | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 28 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
Area | total:
5,770 sq km land: 5,270 sq km water: 500 sq km |
total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | The Sultanate of Brunei's heyday occurred between the 15th and 17th centuries, when its control extended over coastal areas of northwest Borneo and the southern Philippines. Brunei subsequently entered a period of decline brought on by internal strife over royal succession, colonial expansion of European powers, and piracy. In 1888, Brunei became a British protectorate; independence was achieved in 1984. Brunei benefits from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields, the source of one of the highest per capita GDPs in the less developed countries. The same family has now ruled in Brunei for over six centuries. | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. |
Birth rate | 20.45 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 30.72 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.5 billion expenditures: $2.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.35 billion (1997 est.) |
revenues: $76 million
expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million |
Capital | Bandar Seri Begawan | Maseru |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, rainy | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 161 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984) | 2 April 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Negara Brunei Darussalam conventional short form: Brunei |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
Currency | Bruneian dollar (BND) | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) |
Death rate | 3.38 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 | $715 million (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sylvia Gaye STANFIELD embassy: Third Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jalan Sultan, Bandar Seri Begawan mailing address: PSC 470 (BSB), FPO AP 96507 telephone: [673] (2) 229670 FAX: [673] (2) 225293 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Pengiran Anak Dato Haji PUTEH Ibni Mohammad Alam chancery: 3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-0159 FAX: [1] (202) 342-0158 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
Disputes - international | possibly involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam; in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone that encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands, but has not publicly claimed the island | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.3 million (1995) | $123.7 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | This small, wealthy economy is a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation and welfare measures, and village tradition. Exports of crude oil and natural gas account for over half of GDP. Per capita GDP is far above most other Third World countries, and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation) forum. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourist sectors, and, in general, a further widening of the economic base beyond oil and gas. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, remittances from miners employed in South Africa, and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Lesotho has a marked inequality in income distribution and serious unemployment/underemployment problems that will not yield to short-run solutions. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.274 billion kWh (1999) | 100 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 100 million kWh
note: electricity supplied by South Africa (2000) |
Electricity - production | 2.445 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
South China Sea 0 m highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m |
lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
Environment - current issues | seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Malay 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other 12% | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
Exchange rates | Bruneian dollars per US dollar - 1.7365 (January 2001), 1.7240 (2000), 1.6950 (1999), 1.6736 (1998), 1.4848 (1997), 1.4100 (1996); note - the Bruneian dollar is at par with the Singapore dollar | maloti per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch |
Exports | $2.55 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $250 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, natural gas, refined products | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals |
Exports - partners | Japan 42%, US 17%, South Korea 14%, Thailand 3% (1999) | South African Customs Union 53.9%, North America 45.6% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | yellow with two diagonal bands of white (top, almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist side; the national emblem in red is superimposed at the center; the emblem includes a swallow-tailed flag on top of a winged column within an upturned crescent above a scroll and flanked by two upraised hands | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.9 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.3 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
5% industry: 46% services: 49% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 38% services: 44% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,450 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 30 N, 114 40 E | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
Geography - note | close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans; two parts physically separated by Malaysia; almost an enclave of Malaysia | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level |
Heliports | 3 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
1,712 km paved: 1,284 km unpaved: 428 km (1996) |
total: 4,955 km
paved: 887 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 43% (1986-87) |
Illicit drugs | drug trafficking and illegally importing controlled substances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death penalty | - |
Imports | $1.3 billion (c.i.f., 1999 est.) | $720 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Singapore 34%, UK 15%, Malaysia 15%, US 5% (1999) | South African Customs Union 89.5%, Asia 7% (1999) |
Independence | 1 January 1984 (from UK) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1997 est.) | 15.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 14.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 82.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (1999 est.) | 6.9% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | APEC, ARF, ASEAN, C, CCC, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice and judges are sworn in by the monarch for three-year terms) | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court |
Labor force | 144,000 (1995 est.); note - includes foreign workers and military personnel
note: temporary residents make up 41% of labor force (1991) |
700,000 economically active |
Labor force - by occupation | government 48%, production of oil, natural gas, services, and construction 42%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10% (1999 est.) | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa |
Land boundaries | total:
381 km border countries: Malaysia 381 km |
total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 85% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 10.71%
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.29% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Malay (official), English, Chinese | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
Legal system | based on English common law; for Muslims, Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council or Majlis Masyuarat Megeri (a privy council that serves only in a consultative capacity; NA seats; members appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held in March 1962 note: in 1970 the Council was changed to an appointive body by decree of the monarch; an elected Legislative Council is being considered as part of constitutional reform, but elections are unlikely for several years |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election
elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.82 years male: 71.45 years female: 76.31 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 47 years
male: 46.3 years female: 47.8 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 88.2% male: 92.6% female: 83.4% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and Malaysia | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM or to median line territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 348,476 GRT/340,635 DWT ships by type: liquefied gas 7 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military - note | - | The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs. |
Military branches | Land Forces, Navy, Air Force, Royal Brunei Police | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $343 million (FY98) | $34 million (1999) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.1% (FY98) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
106,725 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 526,332 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
61,640 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 283,203 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
3,005 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | National Day, 23 February (1984); note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK, 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
Nationality | noun:
Bruneian(s) adjective: Bruneian |
noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
Natural hazards | typhoons, earthquakes, and severe flooding are very rare | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, timber | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals |
Net migration rate | 4.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 135 km; petroleum products 418 km; natural gas 920 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Brunei Solidarity National Party or PPKB in Malay [Haji Mohd HATTA bin Haji Zainal Abidin, president]; the PPKB is the only legal political party in Brunei; it was registered in 1985, but became largely inactive after 1988, it was revived in 1995 and again in 1998; it has less than 200 registered party members; other parties include Brunei People's Party or PRB (banned in 1962) and Brunei National Democratic Party (registered in May 1965, deregistered by the Brunei Government in 1988) | Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 343,653 (July 2001 est.) | 2,207,954
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 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 49% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.11% (2001 est.) | 1.33% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Belait, Muara, Seria, Tutong | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 329,000 (1998) | NA (2002) |
Railways | total:
13 km (private line) narrow gauge: 13 km 0.610-m gauge |
total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa
narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Muslim (official) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and other 10% | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.14 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | none | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
service throughout country is excellent; international service good to Europe, US, and East Asia domestic: every service available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); digital submarine cable links to Malaysia, Singapore, and Philippines (2001) |
general assessment: rudimentary system
domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 79,000 (1996) | 22,200 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 43,524 (1996) | 21,600 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland in west | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.44 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.01 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.9% (1995 est.) | 45% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 209 km; navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m | none |