Compare Equatorial Guinea (2004) - Benin (2008)

Compare Equatorial Guinea (2004) z Benin (2008)

	Equatorial Guinea (2004)	Benin (2008)

Administrative divisions	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas	12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou
Age structure	0-14 years: 42% (male 110,268; female 109,222) 15-64 years: 54.3% (male 136,370; female 147,431) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,745; female 11,015) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940) 15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber	cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock
Airports	3 (2003 est.)	5 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 less than 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007)
Area	total: 28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Background	Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO has ruled the country for over two decades since seizing power from his uncle, then President MACIAS, in a 1979 coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. The president controls most opposition parties through the judicious use of patronage. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the country's living standards.	Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. KEREKOU stepped down at the end of his second term in 2006 and was succeeded by Thomas YAYI Boni, a political outsider and independent. YAYI has begun a high profile fight against corruption and has strongly promoted accelerating Benin's economic growth.
Birth rate	36.56 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $708.5 million expenditures: $317.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)	revenues: $936.9 million expenditures: $1.226 billion (2007 est.)
Capital	Malabo	name: Porto-Novo (official capital) geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government)
Climate	tropical; always hot, humid	tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline	296 km	121 km
Constitution	approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995	adopted by referendum 2 December 1990
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea	conventional long form: Republic of Benin conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey
Currency	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States	-
Death rate	12.27 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$248 million (2000 est.)	$1.2 billion (2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo	chief of mission: Ambassador Gayleatha B. BROWN embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 21-30-06-50 FAX: [229] 21-30-03-84
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Teodoro Biyogo NSUE chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252	chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996
Disputes - international	in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River, imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, and the unresolved Bakasi allocation contribute to the delay in implementation; creation of a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay with Gabon is hampered by dispute over Mbane Island, administered and occupied by Gabon since the 1970s	two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; Benin accused Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin, but border relations remain strained by rival gang clashes; Benin and Togo announced plans in 2006 to construct a joint hydroelectric dam on the Mona River at the southern end of the border
Economic aid - recipient	$33.8 million (1995)	$374.7 million (2006)
Economy - overview	The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth will remain strong in 2004, led by oil.	The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past seven years, but rapid population growth has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. Specific projects to improve the business climate by reforms to the land tenure system, the commercial justice system, and the financial sector were included in Benin's $307 million Millennium Challenge Account grant signed in February 2006. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture though the government annulled the privatization of Benin's state cotton company in November 2007 after the discovery of irregularities in the bidding process. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. An insufficient electrical supply continues to adversely affect Benin's economic growth though the government recently has taken steps to increase domestic power production.
Electricity - consumption	21.91 million kWh (2001)	587 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	595 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	23.56 million kWh (2001)	105 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m
Environment - current issues	tap water is not potable; deforestation	inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish	Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census)
Exchange rates	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup) head of government: Prime Minister Miguel Abia BITEO BORICO (since 14 June 2004); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud	chief of state: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2011) election results: Thomas YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - Thomas YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%
Exports	NA (2001)	0 bbl/day (2007)
Exports - commodities	petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa	cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood
Exports - partners	US 33.6%, Spain 25.8%, China 14.4%, Canada 11.8%, Italy 6.4% (2003)	China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 January - 31 December	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)	two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side
GDP	purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 20% industry: 60% services: 2.4% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 33.2% industry: 14.5% services: 52.3% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	20% (2002 est.)	4.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	2 00 N, 10 00 E	9 30 N, 2 15 E
Geography - note	insular and continental regions rather widely separated	sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands
Highways	total: 2,880 km (1999 est.)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 29% (2003)
Illicit drugs	-	transshipment point used by Nigerian traffickers for narcotics destined for Western Europe; vulnerable to money laundering due to poorly enforced financial regulations
Imports	NA (2001)	16,830 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities	petroleum sector equipment, other equipment	foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners	US 30.6%, UK 16%, France 15.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 11.9%, Spain 8.1%, Norway 5.9%, Italy 5.3% (2003)	China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006)
Independence	12 October 1968 (from Spain)	1 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	30% (2002 est.)	4.5% (2007 est.)
Industries	petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas	textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement
Infant mortality rate	total: 87.08 deaths/1,000 live births male: 93.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2003 est.)	2.5% (2007 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (observer)	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA sq km	120 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Tribunal	Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
Labor force	NA (October 2000)	5.38 million (2007 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km	total: 1,989 km border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km
Land use	arable land: 4.63% permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2001)	arable land: 23.53% permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005)
Languages	Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo	French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)
Legal system	partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom	based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held 24 April 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president	unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 31 March 2007 (next to be held by March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FCBE 35, ADD 20, PRD 10, other and independents 18
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 55.15 years male: 53 years female: 57.36 years (2004 est.)	total population: 53.44 years male: 52.28 years female: 54.63 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 34.7% male: 47.9% female: 23.3% (2002 census)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,556 GRT/9,704 DWT by type: cargo 2, passenger/cargo 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.)	-
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force	Benin Armed Forces (FAB): Army (l'Arme de Terre), Benin Navy (Forces Navales Beninois, FNB), Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2008)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$75.1 million (2003)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.5% (2003)	1.7% (2006)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 120,463 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 61,084 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 12 October (1968)	National Day, 1 August (1960)
Nationality	noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean	noun: Beninese (singular and plural) adjective: Beninese
Natural hazards	violent windstorms, flash floods	hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March
Natural resources	oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium, titanium, iron ore	small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	condensate 37 km; gas 39 km; liquid natural gas 4 km; oil 24 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO]	Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Benin Renaissance or RB [Rosine SOGLO]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Theophile NATA]; Key Force or FC [Lazare SÈHOUÉTO]; Movement for the People's Alternative or MAP [Olivier CAPO-CHICHI]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Dominique HOUNGNINOU]; Social Democrat Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Union for the Relief or UPR [Issa SALIFOU]; Union for Democracy and National Solidarity or UDS [Sacca LAFIA] note: approximately 20 additional minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	523,051 (July 2004 est.)	8,078,314 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 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	37.4% (2007 est.)
Population growth rate	2.43% (2004 est.)	2.674% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Bata, Luba, Malabo	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002)	AM 1, FM 34, shortwave 1 (2007)
Railways	-	total: 758 km narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Religions	nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices	Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census)
Sex ratio	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: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal adult	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: poor system with adequate government services domestic: NA international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)	general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line network is almost saturated with fixed-line teledensity stuck at a meager 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone subscribership is increasing domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections; four mobile-cellular providers international: country code - 229; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use	9,600 (2003)	77,300 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	41,500 (2003)	1.056 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2002)	6 (2007)
Terrain	coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic	mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains
Total fertility rate	4.68 children born/woman (2004 est.)	5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	30% (1998 est.)	NA%
Waterways	-	150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)

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