Congo, Republic of the (2001) | Cayman Islands (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza, Brazzaville*, Cuvette, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.43% (male 618,411; female 609,633) 15-64 years: 54.23% (male 765,501; female 804,125) 65 years and over: 3.34% (male 38,772; female 57,894) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 22% (male 3,836; female 4,156)
15-64 years: 69.7% (male 12,335; female 12,929) 65 years and over: 8.3% (male 1,399; female 1,618) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming |
Airports | 33 (2000 est.) | 3 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
29 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
342,000 sq km land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km |
total: 262 sq km
land: 262 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO. | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica from 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. |
Birth rate | 38.24 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.45 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$870 million expenditures: $970 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $265.2 million
expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
Capital | Brazzaville | George Town |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) |
Coastline | 169 km | 160 km |
Constitution | Draft constitution approved by transitional parliament in September 2000 | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of the Congo conventional short form: none local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | Caymanian dollar (KYD) |
Death rate | 16.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.24 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $5 billion (1999 est.) | $70 million (1996) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador David H. KAEUPER embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 FAX: [243] (88) 41036 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa) |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
(vacant); Charge d'Affaires ad interim Serge MOMBOULI chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | most of the Congo river boundary with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Stanley Pool/Pool Malebo area) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $159.1 million (1995) | $NA |
Economy - overview | The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. Moreover, the government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings, contributing to the government's shortage of revenues. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in inflation of 61% in 1994, but inflation has subsided since. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. The reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. However, economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the Republic of the Congo's budget deficit. Even with the IMF's renewed confidence and high world oil prices, Congo is unlikely to realize growth of more than 5% in 2001-02. With the return to fragile peace, the IMF approved a $14 million credit in November 2000 to aid post-conflict reconstruction. | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1998, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million in 1997, with 600,000 from the US. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. |
Electricity - consumption | 406.9 million kWh (1999) | 330.15 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 126 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 302 million kWh (1999) | 355 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
0.66% hydro: 99.34% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchments |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans NA%; note - Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that of 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997 | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.82 (29 October 2001), 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 16 August 1992 (next was to be held 27 July 1997 but will be delayed for several years pending the drafting of a new constitution) election results: Pascal LISSOUBA elected president in 1992; percent of vote - Pascal LISSOUBA 61.3%, Bernard KOLELAS 38.7%; note - LISSOUBA was deposed in 1997, replaced by Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor Bruce DINWIDDY (since 29 May 2002)
head of government: Chief Secretary W. McKeeva BUSH (since NA December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch; the chief secretary is appointed by the governor |
Exports | $2.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $1.2 million (1999) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum 50%, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods |
Exports - partners | US 23%, Benelux 14%, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, China (1998) | mostly US |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.18 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 48% services: 42% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 3% services: 95% (1994 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $30,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 4.5% (2000) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 S, 15 00 E | 19 30 N, 80 30 W |
Geography - note | about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them | important location between Cuba and Central America |
Highways | total:
12,800 km paved: 1,242 km unpaved: 11,558 km (1996) |
total: 406 km
paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | offshore financial center; vulnerable to drug transshipment to the US and Europe |
Imports | $870 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $457.4 million (1999) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | France 23%, US 9%, Belgium 8%, UK 7%, Italy (1997 est.) | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan |
Independence | 15 August 1960 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | petroleum extraction, cement kilning, lumbering, brewing, sugar milling, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarette making | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture |
Infant mortality rate | 99.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 9.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2000 est.) | 2.3% (2000) (2000) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 16 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal |
Labor force | NA | 19,820 (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (1995) |
Land boundaries | total:
5,504 km border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 29% forests and woodland: 62% other: 9% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo has the most users) | English |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law | British common law and local statutes |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Transitional Council (75 seats, members elected by reconciliation forum of 1,420 delegates on NA January 1998); note - the National Transitional Council replaced the bicameral Parliament
elections: National Transitional Council - last held NA January 1998 (next to be held NA 2001); note - at that election the National Transitional Council is to be replaced by a bicameral assembly election results: National Transitional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members from the Executive Council and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
47.57 years male: 44.38 years female: 50.85 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 79.18 years
male: 76.38 years female: 81.59 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 74.9% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM |
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 121 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,034,181 GRT/3,191,597 DWT
ships by type: bulk 24, cargo 4, chemical tanker 34, container 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 14, refrigerated cargo 40, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Bahrain 2, China 1, Germany 4, Greece 27, Hong Kong 3, Italy 2, Japan 1, Norway 14, Sweden 13, United Kingdom 15, United States 35 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Navy, Gendarmerie | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $110 million (FY93) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.8% (FY93) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
684,922 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
347,946 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
32,350 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 August (1960) | Constitution Day, first Monday in July |
Nationality | noun:
Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo |
noun: Caymanian(s)
adjective: Caymanian |
Natural hazards | seasonal flooding | hurricanes (July to November) |
Natural resources | petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, natural gas, hydropower | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 25 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal) [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president]; Association for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO] | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team [leader NA]; Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Team Cayman [leader NA]; United Democratic Party [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC | NA |
Population | 2,894,336
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 2001 est.) |
36,273 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.2% (2001 est.) | 2.03% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Brazzaville, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire | Cayman Brac, George Town |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 341,000 (1997) | 36,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
894 km narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2000) |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2% | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Church of God, other Protestant, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 0.86 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out-of-order domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (1997) | 19,000 (1995) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,000 (1996) | 2,534 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1999) | 1 with cable system |
Terrain | coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs |
Total fertility rate | 5 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 4.1% (1997) |
Waterways | 1,120 km
note: the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) rivers provide 1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; other rivers are used for local traffic only |
none |