Chad (2002) | Saint Helena (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture); Batha, Biltine, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-Kebbi, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile
note: instead of 14 prefectures, there may be a new administrative structure of 28 departments (departments, singular - department), and 1 city*; Assongha, Baguirmi, Bahr El Gazal, Bahr Koh, Batha Oriental, Batha Occidental, Biltine, Borkou, Dababa, Ennedi, Guera, Hadjer Lamis, Kabia, Kanem, Lac, Lac Iro, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Mayo-Boneye, Mayo-Dallah, Monts de Lam, N'djamena*, Ouaddai, Salamat, Sila, Tandjile Oriental, Tandjile Occidental, Tibesti |
1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.8% (male 2,162,732; female 2,135,354)
15-64 years: 49.4% (male 2,108,134; female 2,340,189) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 103,683; female 147,145) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.9% (male 704; female 685)
15-64 years: 71.6% (male 2,732; female 2,545) 65 years and over: 9.5% (male 309; female 392) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 49 (2001) | 1 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 7
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 1.284 million sq km
land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of California | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1998 a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which continued to escalate throughout 2000. A peace agreement, signed in January 2002 between the government and the rebels, provides for the demobilization of the rebels and their reintegration into the political system. Despite movement toward democratic reform, power remains in the hands of a northern ethnic oligarchy. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 47.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 12.9 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $198 million
expenditures: $218 million, including capital expenditures of $146 million |
revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) |
Capital | N'Djamena | Jamestown |
Climate | tropical in south, desert in north | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 60 km |
Constitution | passed by referendum 31 March 1996 | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Chad
conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad local short form: Tchad |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) |
Death rate | 15.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.24 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.1 billion (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher E. GOLDTHWAIT
embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] (51) 70-09 FAX: [235] (51) 56-54 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Hassaballah Abdelhadi Ahmat SOUBIANE
chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | Lake Chad Commission urges signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, the site of continuing armed clashes; Nigeria requests and Chad rejects redemarcation of boundary, which lacks clear demarcation in sections and has caused several cross-border incidents; Chadian rebels from Aozou reside in Libya | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $238.3 million (1995); note - $125 million committed by Taiwan (August 1997); $30 million committed by African Development Bank | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
Economy - overview | Chad's primarily agricultural economy will be boosted by major oilfield and pipeline projects that began in 2000. Over 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and stock raising for their livelihood. Cotton, cattle, and gum arabic provide the bulk of Chad's export earnings, but Chad will begin to export oil in 2004. Chad's economy has long been handicapped by its land-locked position, high energy costs, and a history of instability. Chad relies on foreign assistance and foreign capital for most public and private sector investment projects. A consortium led by two US companies is investing $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves estimated at 1 billion barrels in southern Chad. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 85.56 million kWh (2000) | 4.65 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 92 million kWh (2000) | 5 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Djourab Depression 160 m
highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
- |
Ethnic groups | 200 distinct groups; in the north and center: Arabs, Gorane (Toubou, Daza, Kreda), Zaghawa, Kanembou, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Hausa, Boulala, and Maba, most of whom are Muslim; in the south: Sara (Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye), Moundang, Moussei, Massa, most of whom are Christian or animist; about 1,000 French citizens live in Chad | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY (since 4 December 1990)
head of government: Prime Minister Haroun KABADI (since 12 June 2002) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY reelected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 63%, Ngarlegy YORONGAR 16%, Saleh KEBZABO 7% note: government coalition - MPS, UNDR, and URD |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Michael CLANCY (since NA October 2003) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $172 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, cattle, gum arabic | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Portugal 38%, Germany 12%, Thailand, Costa Rica, South Africa, France, Nigeria (2001) | US 23.7%, Japan 20.5%, Netherlands 16%, Tanzania 15.4%, Spain 6.4%, UK 5.1%, Indonesia 4.5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $8.9 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 38%
industry: 13% services: 49% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,030 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 19 00 E | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | total: 33,400 km
paved: 450 km unpaved: 32,950 km note: probably no more than 8,000 km of the total receive maintenance, the remainder being desert tracks (2000) |
total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $223 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | France 40%, Cameroon 13%, Nigeria 12%, India 5% (1999) | UK 47.6%, Tanzania 14.6%, Italy 12.1%, South Africa 10.9%, US 5.3% (2002) |
Independence | 11 August 1960 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (1995) | NA% |
Industries | cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 93.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 20.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.66 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2002) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 200 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | NA | 3,500
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture more than 80% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 5,968 km
border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.78%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 97.2% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects | English |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
Legislative branch | bicameral according to constitution, consists of a National Assembly (155 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and a Senate (not yet created and size unspecified, members to serve six-year terms, one-third of membership renewable every two years)
elections: National Assembly - last held 21 April 2002 (next to be held in NA April 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPS 110, RDP 12, FAR 9, RNDP 5, URD 5, UNDR 3, others 11 |
unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 51.27 years
male: 49.22 years female: 53.4 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 77.38 years
male: 74.49 years female: 80.42 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic
total population: 40% male: 49% female: 31% (1998) |
definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, south of Libya | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Armed Forces (including National Army, Air Force, and Gendarmerie), Rapid Intervention Force, National and Nomadic Guard (GNNT), Presidential Security Guard, Police | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $31 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,881,769 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 985,094 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 82,003 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Chadian(s)
adjective: Chadian |
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad) | fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Federation Action for the Republic or FAR [Ngarlejy YORONGAR]; National Rally for Development and Progress or RNDP [Mamadou BISSO]; National Union for Development and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; National Union for Renewal and Democracy or UNRD [leader NA]; Party for Liberty and Democracy or PLD [Ibni Oumar Mahamat SALEH]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman] (originally in opposition but now the party in power and the party of the president); Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Lal Mahamat CHOUA]; Union for Democracy and the Republic or UDR [Jean Bawoyeu ALINGUE]; Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE]; Viva Rally for Development and Progress or Viva RNDP [Delwa Kassire COUMAKOYE] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 8,997,237 (July 2002 est.) | 7,367 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 80% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.27% (2002 est.) | 0.67% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 5 (2002) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.67 million (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim 51%, Christian 35%, animist 7%, other 7% | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment: primitive system
domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network international: HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascensionm, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 9,700 (1999) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 5,500 (2000) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
Terrain | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 6.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.54 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 2,000 km | none |