Cuba (2005) | Kenya (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 special municipality* (municipio especial); Camaguey, Ciego de Avila, Cienfuegos, Ciudad de La Habana, Granma, Guantanamo, Holguin, Isla de la Juventud*, La Habana, Las Tunas, Matanzas, Pinar del Rio, Sancti Spiritus, Santiago de Cuba, Villa Clara | 7 provinces and 1 area*; Central, Coast, Eastern, Nairobi Area*, North Eastern, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.6% (male 1,139,644/female 1,079,412)
15-64 years: 70.1% (male 3,977,110/female 3,975,818) 65 years and over: 10.4% (male 540,720/female 633,966) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.3% (male 6,609,904; female 6,461,945)
15-64 years: 55.8% (male 8,900,615; female 8,766,698) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 389,918; female 510,011) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock | tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables; dairy products, beef, pork, poultry, eggs |
Airports | 170 (2004 est.) | 230 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 79
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 37 (2004 est.) |
total: 19
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 91
914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 62 (2004 est.) |
total: 211
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 113 under 914 m: 83 (2002) |
Area | total: 110,860 sq km
land: 110,860 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 582,650 sq km
land: 569,250 sq km water: 13,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | slightly more than twice the size of Nevada |
Background | The native Amerindian population of Cuba began to decline after the European discovery of the island by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1492 and following its development as a Spanish colony during the next several centuries. Large numbers of African slaves were imported to work the coffee and sugar plantations and Havana became the launching point for the annual treasure fleets bound for Spain from Mexico and Peru. Spanish rule was severe and exploitative and occasional rebellions were harshly suppressed. It was US intervention during the Spanish-American War in 1898 that finally overthrew Spanish rule. The subsequent Treaty of Paris established Cuban independence, which was granted in 1902 after a three-year transition period. Fidel CASTRO led a rebel army to victory in 1959; his iron rule has held the regime together since then. Cuba's Communist revolution, with Soviet support, was exported throughout Latin America and Africa during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. The country is now slowly recovering from a severe economic recession in 1990, following the withdrawal of former Soviet subsidies, worth $4 billion to $6 billion annually. Cuba portrays its difficulties as the result of the US embargo in place since 1961. Illicit migration to the US - using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, air flights, or via the southwest border - is a continuing problem. The US Coast Guard intercepted 1,498 individuals attempting to cross the Straits of Florida in 2004. | Founding president and liberation struggle icon Jomo KENYATTA led Kenya from independence until his death in 1978, when President Daniel Toroitich arap MOI took power in a constitutional succession. The country was a de facto one-party state from 1969 until 1982 when the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) made itself the sole legal party in Kenya. MOI acceded to internal and external pressure for political liberalization in late 1991. The ethnically fractured opposition failed to dislodge KANU from power in elections in 1992 and 1997, which were marred by violence and fraud, but are viewed as having generally reflected the will of the Kenyan people. President MOI stepped down in December of 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai KIBAKI, running as the candidate of the multiethnic, united opposition group, the National Rainbow Coalition, defeated KANU candidate Uhuru KENYATTA and assumed the presidency following a campaign centered on an anticorruption platform. |
Birth rate | 12.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 28.81 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $18.01 billion
expenditures: $19.06 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $2.91 billion
expenditures: $2.97 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Havana | Nairobi |
Climate | tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November to April); rainy season (May to October) | varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior |
Coastline | 3,735 km | 536 km |
Constitution | 24 February 1976; amended July 1992 and June 2002 | 12 December 1963, amended as a republic 1964; reissued with amendments 1979, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1997, and 2001 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Cuba
conventional short form: Cuba local long form: Republica de Cuba local short form: Cuba |
conventional long form: Republic of Kenya
conventional short form: Kenya former: British East Africa |
Currency | - | Kenyan shilling (KES) |
Death rate | 7.19 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 16.01 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $12.09 billion (convertible currency); another $15-20 billion owed to Russia (2004 est.) | $5.7 billion (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none; note - the US has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer James C. CASON; address: USINT, Swiss Embassy, Calzada between L and M Streets, Vedado, Havana; telephone: [53] (7) 833-3551 through 3559 (operator assistance required); FAX: [53] (7) 833-3700; protecting power in Cuba is Switzerland | chief of mission: Ambassador Johnnie CARSON
embassy: US Embassy, United Nations Ave., Gigiti; P. O. Box 606 Village Market Nairobi mailing address: Box 21A, Unit 64100, APO AE 09831 telephone: [254] (2) 537-800 FAX: [254] (2) 537-810 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - Cuba has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer Dagoberto RODRIGUEZ Barrera; address: Cuban Interests Section, Swiss Embassy, 2630 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009; telephone: [1] (202) 797-8518 | chief of mission: Ambassador Yusuf Abdulraham NZIBO
chancery: 2249 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-6101 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3829 consulate(s) general: offices in Los Angeles and New York are closed; mission to the UN remains open |
Disputes - international | US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease | Kenya's administrative boundary still extends into the Sudan, creating the "Ilemi triangle" |
Economic aid - recipient | $68.2 million (1997 est.) | $457 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | The government continues to balance the need for economic loosening against a desire for firm political control. It has undertaken limited reforms to increase enterprise efficiency and alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services. A major feature of the economy is the dichotomy between relatively efficient export enclaves and inefficient domestic sectors. The average Cuban's standard of living remains at a lower level than before the depression of the 1990s, which was caused by the loss of Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. The government in 2004 strengthened its controls over dollars coming into the economy from tourism, remittances, and trade. | Kenya, the regional hub for trade and finance in East Africa, is hampered by corruption and reliance upon several primary goods whose prices remain low. Following strong economic growth in 1995 and 1996, Kenya's economy has stagnated, with GDP growth failing to keep up with the rate of population growth. In 1997, the IMF suspended Kenya's Enhanced Structural Adjustment Program due to the government's failure to maintain reforms and curb corruption. A severe drought from 1999 to 2000 compounded Kenya's problems, causing water and energy rationing and reducing agricultural output. As a result, GDP contracted by 0.3% in 2000. The IMF, which had resumed loans in 2000 to help Kenya through the drought, again halted lending in 2001 when the government failed to institute several anticorruption measures. Despite the return of strong rains in 2001, weak commodity prices, endemic corruption, and low investment limited Kenya's economic growth to 1%. Growth fell below 1% in 2002 because of erratic rains, low investor confidence, meager donor support, and political infighting up to the elections. In the key December 27, 2002 elections, Daniel Arap MOI's 24-year-old reign ended, and a new opposition government took on the formidable economic problems facing the nation. Substantial donor support and rooting out corruption are essential to making Kenya realize its substantial economic potential. |
Electricity - consumption | 13.4 billion kWh (2002) | 3.981 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 230 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 14.41 billion kWh (2002) | 4.033 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 71%
hydro: 17.7% nuclear: 0% other: 11.3% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Pico Turquino 2,005 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Kenya 5,199 m |
Environment - current issues | air and water pollution; biodiversity loss; deforestation | water pollution from urban and industrial wastes; degradation of water quality from increased use of pesticides and fertilizers; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; poaching |
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
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mulatto 51%, white 37%, black 11%, Chinese 1% | Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1% |
Exchange rates | Convertible pesos per US dollar - 0.93
note: Cuba has three currencies in circulation: the Cuban peso (CUP), the convertible peso (CUC), and the US dollar (USD), although the dollar is being withdrawn from circulation; in April 2005 the official exchange rate changed from $1 per CUC to $1.08 per CUC (0.93 CUC per $1), both for individuals and enterprises; individuals can buy 24 Cuban pesos (CUP) for each CUC sold, or sell 25 Cuban pesos for each CUC bought; enterprises, however, must exchange CUP and CUC at a 1:1 ratio. |
Kenyan shillings per US dollar - 78.75 (2002), 78.56 (2001), 76.18 (2000), 70.33 (1999), 60.37 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of the Council of State and President of the Council of Ministers Fidel CASTRO Ruz (prime minister from February 1959 until 24 February 1976 when office was abolished; president since 2 December 1976); First Vice President of the Council of State and First Vice President of the Council of Ministers Gen. Raul CASTRO Ruz (since 2 December 1976); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President of the Council of State and President of the Council of Ministers Fidel CASTRO Ruz (prime minister from February 1959 until 24 February 1976 when office was abolished; president since 2 December 1976); First Vice President of the Council of State and First Vice President of the Council of Ministers Gen. Raul CASTRO Ruz (since 2 December 1976); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the president of the Council of State and appointed by the National Assembly or the 31-member Council of State, elected by the Assembly to act on its behalf when it is not in session elections: president and vice presidents elected by the National Assembly for a term of five years; election last held 6 March 2003 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Fidel CASTRO Ruz reelected president; percent of legislative vote - 100%; Raul CASTRO Ruz elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - 100% |
chief of state: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002) and Vice President Moody AWORI (since 25 September 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Mwai KIBAKI (since 30 December 2002) and Vice President Moody AWORI (since 25 September 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; in addition to receiving the largest number of votes in absolute terms, the presidential candidate must also win 25% or more of the vote in at least five of Kenya's seven provinces and one area to avoid a runoff; election last held 27 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2007); vice president appointed by the president election results: President Mwai KIBAKI elected; percent of vote - Mwai KIBAKI 63%, Uhuru KENYATTA 30% |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee | tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement |
Exports - partners | Netherlands 22.7%, Canada 20.6%, China 7.7%, Russia 7.5%, Spain 6.4%, Venezuela 4.4% (2004) | Uganda 18.3%, UK 12.9%, US 8%, Netherlands 7.6%, Pakistan 4.9%, Tanzania 4.4%, Egypt 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | five equal horizontal bands of blue (top and bottom) alternating with white; a red equilateral triangle based on the hoist side bears a white, five-pointed star in the center; design influenced by the US flag | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green; the red band is edged in white; a large warrior's shield covering crossed spears is superimposed at the center |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $32.89 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.6%
industry: 25.5% services: 67.9% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 24%
industry: 13% services: 63% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2004 est.) | 1.1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 30 N, 80 00 W | 1 00 N, 38 00 E |
Geography - note | largest country in Caribbean and westernmost island of the Greater Antilles | the Kenyan Highlands comprise one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa; glaciers are found on Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest peak; unique physiography supports abundant and varied wildlife of scientific and economic value |
Highways | total: 60,858 km
paved: 29,820 km (including 638 km of expressway) unpaved: 31,038 km (1999 est.) |
total: 63,942 km
paved: 7,737 km unpaved: 56,205 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 37.2% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | territorial waters and air space serve as transshipment zone primarily for marijuana bound for North America; established the death penalty for certain drug-related crimes in 1999 | widespread harvesting of small plots of marijuana; transit country for South Asian heroin destined for Europe and North America; Indian methaqualone also transits on way to South Africa; significant potential for money-laundering activity given the country's status as a regional financial center, massive corruption, and relatively high levels of narcotics-associated activities |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals | machinery and transportation equipment, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics |
Imports - partners | Spain 14.7%, Venezuela 13.5%, US 11%, China 8.9%, Canada 6.4%, Italy 6.2%, Mexico 4.9% (2004) | UAE 12%, Saudi Arabia 8.7%, US 8.1%, UK 7.1%, South Africa 7.1%, France 5.8%, China 5.5%, Japan 5%, India 4.8% (2002) |
Independence | 20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902) | 12 December 1963 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.4% (2004 est.) | 0.9% (2002 est.) |
Industries | sugar, petroleum, tobacco, construction, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery, pharmaceuticals | small-scale consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, soap, cigarettes, flour), agricultural products processing; oil refining, cement; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 63.36 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 60.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.1% (2004 est.) | 1.9% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS (excluded from formal participation since 1962), OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, C, EADB, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOP, UNU, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 65 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 870 sq km (1998 est.) | 670 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | People's Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo Popular (president, vice president, and other judges are elected by the National Assembly) | Court of Appeal (chief justice is appointed by the president); High Court |
Labor force | 4.55 million
note: state sector 78%, non-state sector 22% (2004 est.) |
10 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 24%, industry 25%, services 51% (1999) | agriculture 75% 75%-80% |
Land boundaries | total: 29 km
border countries: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay 29 km note: Guantanamo Naval Base is leased by the US and thus remains part of Cuba |
total: 3,477 km
border countries: Ethiopia 861 km, Somalia 682 km, Sudan 232 km, Tanzania 769 km, Uganda 933 km |
Land use | arable land: 33.05%
permanent crops: 7.6% other: 59.35% (2001) |
arable land: 7.03%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 92.06% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish | English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages |
Legal system | based on Spanish and American law, with large elements of Communist legal theory; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Kenyan statutory law, Kenyan and English common law, tribal law, and Islamic law; judicial review in High Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; constitutional amendment of 1982 making Kenya a de jure one-party state repealed in 1991 |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly of People's Power or Asemblea Nacional del Poder Popular (609 seats, elected directly from slates approved by special candidacy commissions; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 January 2003 (next to be held in NA 2008) election results: percent of vote - PCC 97.6%; seats - PCC 609 |
unicameral National Assembly or Bunge (224 seats; 210 members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms, 12 so-called "nominated" members who are appointed by the president but selected by the parties in proportion to their parliamentary vote totals, 2 ex-officio members)
elections: last held 27 December 2002 (next to be held by early 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NARC 125, KANU 64, FORD-P 14, other 7; ex-officio 2; seats appointed by the president - NARC 7, KANU 4, FORD-P 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.23 years
male: 74.94 years female: 79.65 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 45.22 years
male: 45.02 years female: 45.43 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97.2% female: 96.9% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.1% male: 90.6% female: 79.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, 150 km south of Key West, Florida | Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 54,818 GRT/81,850 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 4, chemical tanker 1, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Spain 1) registered in other countries: 20 (2005) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,893 GRT/6,320 DWT
ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | Moscow, for decades the key military supporter and supplier of Cuba, cut off almost all military aid by 1993 | - |
Military branches | Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR): Revolutionary Army (ER), Revolutionary Navy (MGR), Air and Air Defense Force (DAAFAR), Territorial Militia Troops (MTT), Youth Labor Army (EJT) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $572.3 million (2003) | $185.2 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (2003) | 1.8% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 8,096,142 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 5,017,501 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 10 December (1898); note - 10 December 1898 is the date of independence from Spain, 20 May 1902 is the date of independence from US administration; Rebellion Day, 26 July (1953) | Independence Day, 12 December (1963) |
Nationality | noun: Cuban(s)
adjective: Cuban |
noun: Kenyan(s)
adjective: Kenyan |
Natural hazards | the east coast is subject to hurricanes from August to November (in general, the country averages about one hurricane every other year); droughts are common | recurring drought; flooding during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | cobalt, nickel, iron ore, chromium, copper, salt, timber, silica, petroleum, arable land | gold, limestone, soda ash, salt, rubies, fluorspar, garnets, wildlife, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -1.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: according to UNHCR, by the end of 2001 Kenya was host to 220,000 refugees from neighboring countries, including: Somalia 145,000 and Sudan 68,000 (2003 est.) |
People - note | illicit migration is a continuing problem; Cubans attempt to depart the island and enter the US using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, direct flights, or falsified visas; Cubans also use non-maritime routes to enter the US including direct flights to Miami and overland via the southwest border | - |
Pipelines | gas 49 km; oil 230 km (2004) | refined products 752 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | only party - Cuban Communist Party or PCC [Fidel CASTRO Ruz, first secretary] | Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People or FORD-People [Kimaniwa NYOIKE, chairman]; Kenya African National Union or KANU [Uhuru KENYATTA]; National Rainbow Coalition or NARC [Mwai KIBAKI] - the governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | human rights groups; labor unions; Muslim organizations; National Convention Executive Council or NCEC, a proreform coalition of political parties and nongovernment organizations [Kivutha KIBWANA]; Protestant National Council of Churches of Kenya or NCCK [Mutava MUSYIMI]; Roman Catholic and other Christian churches; Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims or SUPKEM [Shaykh Abdul Gafur al-BUSAIDY] |
Population | 11,346,670 (July 2005 est.) | 31,639,091
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 50% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.33% (2005 est.) | 1.27% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cienfuegos, Havana, Matanzas | Kisumu, Lamu, Mombasa |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 169, FM 55, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 24, FM 18, shortwave 6 (2001) |
Railways | total: 4,226 km
standard gauge: 4,226 km 1.435-m gauge (140 km electrified) note: an additional 7,742 km of track is used by sugar plantations; about 65% of this track is standard gauge; the rest is narrow gauge (2004) |
total: 2,778 km
narrow gauge: 2,778 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | nominally 85% Roman Catholic prior to CASTRO assuming power; Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, and Santeria are also represented | Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, indigenous beliefs 10%, Muslim 10%, other 2%
note: a large majority of Kenyans are Christian, but estimates for the percentage of the population that adheres to Islam or indigenous beliefs vary widely |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 16 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: greater investment beginning in 1994 and the establishment of a new Ministry of Information Technology and Communications in 2000 has resulted in improvements in the system; wireless service is expensive and remains restricted to foreigners and regime elites, many Cubans procure wireless service illegally with the help of foreigners
domestic: national fiber-optic system under development; 85% of switches digitized by end of 2004; telephone line density remains low, at 10 per 100 inhabitants; domestic cellular service expanding international: country code - 53; fiber-optic cable laid to but not linked to US network; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
general assessment: unreliable; little attempt to modernize except for service to business
domestic: trunks are primarily microwave radio relay; business data commonly transferred by a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 574,400 (2002) | 310,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 17,900 (2002) | 540,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 58 (1997) | 8 (2002) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains in the southeast | low plains rise to central highlands bisected by Great Rift Valley; fertile plateau in west |
Total fertility rate | 1.66 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.47 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2.5% (2004 est.) | 40% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 240 km (2004) | NA
note: part of the Lake Victoria system is within the boundaries of Kenya |