Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2006) | Nigeria (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.3% (male 28,089,017/female 27,665,212)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 36,644,885/female 35,405,915) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,930,007/female 2,124,695) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts | cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish |
Airports | 1 (2006) | 69 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 33
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 18 (2006) |
Area | total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
total: 923,768 sq km
land: 910,768 sq km water: 13,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly more than twice the size of California |
Background | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. | British influence and control over what would become Nigeria grew through the 19th century. A series of constitutions after World War II granted Nigeria greater autonomy; independence came in 1960. Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The president faces the daunting task of reforming a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. Although the April 2003 elections were marred by some irregularities, Nigeria is currently experiencing its longest period of civilian rule since independence. |
Birth rate | NA | 40.43 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $12.86 billion
expenditures: $13.54 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 55 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Abuja
geographic coordinates: 9 12 N, 7 11 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year | varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north |
Coastline | 26 km | 853 km |
Constitution | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 | new constitution adopted May 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 16.94 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $32.45 billion (2005 est.) |
Dependency status | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador John CAMPBELL
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205 FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Professor George A. OBIOZOR
chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, New York |
Disputes - international | none | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; following the UN-brokered Greentree Agreement of 12 June 2006, Nigeria, in completion of the 2002 ICJ decision on the Cameroon-Nigerian land boundary, handed sovereignty of the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon on 14 August; all Nigerian military forces have reportedly withdrawn from the region but Nigeria will continue to maintain a police and administrative presence in the southeastern "transition zone" for a period of up to two years; Nigeria pledges to provide for the resettlement of those Bakassi residents who wish to remain Nigerian citizens; the ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River all contribute to the delay in implementation; a joint task force was established in 2004 that resolved disputes over and redrew the maritime and the 870-km land boundary with Benin on the Okpara River; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | IMF, $250 million (1998) |
Economy - overview | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. | Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management, is undertaking some reforms under a new reform-minded administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from its overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. In the last year the government has begun showing the political will to implement the market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. In 2003, the government began deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the country's four oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy, a domestically designed and run program modeled on the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility for fiscal and monetary management. GDP rose strongly in 2005, based largely on increased oil exports and high global crude prices. In November 2005, Abuja won Paris Club approval for a historic debt-relief deal that by March 2006 should eliminate $30 billion worth of Nigeria's total $37 billion external debt. The deal first requires that Nigeria repay roughly $12 billion in arrears to its bilateral creditors. Nigeria would then be allowed to buy back its remaining debt stock at a discount. The deal also commits Nigeria to more intensified IMF reviews. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 14.46 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | - | 40 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | - | 15.59 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chappal Waddi 2,419 m |
Environment - current issues | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs | soil degradation; rapid deforestation; urban air and water pollution; desertification; oil pollution - water, air, and soil; has suffered serious damage from oil spills; loss of arable land; rapid urbanization |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Europeans, Cocos Malays | Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) | nairas per US dollar - 132.59 (2005), 132.89 (2004), 129.22 (2003), 120.58 (2002), 111.23 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held April 2007) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6% |
Exports | $NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | copra | petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber |
Exports - partners | Australia (2004) | US 49.7%, Brazil 10.4%, Spain 7.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 26.9%
industry: 48.7% services: 24.4% (2005 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 6.9% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 S, 96 50 E | 10 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation | the Niger enters the country in the northwest and flows southward through tropical rain forests and swamps to its delta in the Gulf of Guinea |
Heliports | - | 1 (2006) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97) |
Illicit drugs | - | a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center; massive corruption and criminal activity; Nigeria has improved some anti-money-laundering controls, resulting in its removal from the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF's) Noncooperative Countries and Territories List in June 2006; Nigeria's anti-money-laundering regime continues to be monitored by FATF |
Imports | $NA | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs | machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals |
Imports - partners | Australia (2004) | China 10.4%, US 7.3%, UK 6.7%, Netherlands 6%, France 5.9%, Germany 4.2% (2005) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 1 October 1960 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 3.8% (2005 est.) |
Industries | copra products and tourism | crude oil, coal, tin, columbite; palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood; hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel, small commercial ship construction and repair |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 97.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 104.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 90.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 13.5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 2,820 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) |
Labor force | NA | 57.21 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others | agriculture: 70%
industry: 10% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 33.02%
permanent crops: 3.14% other: 63.84% (2005) |
Languages | Malay (Cocos dialect), English | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani |
Legal system | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (in 12 northern states), and traditional law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats - 3 from each state plus 1 from Abuja, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (360 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.7%, ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27, AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 8.8%, other 9.3%; seats by party - PDP 223, ANPP 96, AD 34, other 6; note - one seat is vacant |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 47.08 years
male: 46.52 years female: 47.66 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68% male: 75.7% female: 60.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 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: 52 ships (1000 GRT or over) 277,709 GRT/475,414 DWT
by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 5, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 36, specialized tanker 2 foreign-owned: 4 (Norway 1, Pakistan 1, Singapore 1, Spain 1) registered in other countries: 28 (Bahamas 2, Bermuda 11, Cambodia 2, Comoros 2, Panama 7, Poland 1, Seychelles 1, unknown 2) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force | - |
Military branches | - | Nigerian Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, Niger Air Force (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $737.6 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.8% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) | Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian |
Natural hazards | cyclone season is October to April | periodic droughts; flooding |
Natural resources | fish | natural gas, petroleum, tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, niobium, lead, zinc, arable land |
Net migration rate | NA | 0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 126 km; gas 2,812 km; liquid petroleum gas 125 km; oil 4,278 km; refined products 3,517 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Alliance for Democracy or AD [Mojisoluwa AKINFENWA]; All Nigeria Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand Alliance or APGA [disputed leadership]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Dr. Ahmadu ALI]; Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples Party or UNPP [disputed leadership] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 574 (July 2006 est.) | 131,859,731
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 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 60% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0% (2006 est.) | 2.38% (2006 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 3,505 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | NA | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station |
general assessment: expansion and modernization of the fixed-line telephone network has been slow due to faltering efforts at privatization
domestic: the addition of a second fixed-line provider in 2002 resulted in faster growth in this service; wireless telephony has grown rapidly, in part responding to the shortcomings of the fixed-line network; four wireless (GSM) service providers operate nationally; the combined growth resulted in a sharp increase in teledensity reported to be over 18% in March 2006 international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 287 (1992) | 1,223,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | note - analog cellular service available | 21,571,131 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002) |
Terrain | flat, low-lying coral atolls | southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | NA | 5.49 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 60% (2000 est.) | 2.9% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | - | 8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2005) |