Ghana (2005) | Montenegro (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western | 21 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Andrijevica, Bar, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Budva, Cetinje, Danilovgrad, Herceg Novi, Kolasin, Kotor, Mojkovac, Niksic, Plav, Pluzine, Pljevlja, Podgorica, Rozaje, Savnik, Tivat, Ulcinj, Zabljak |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.1% (male 3,946,326/female 3,862,390)
15-64 years: 59.1% (male 6,203,035/female 6,235,107) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 366,472/female 416,523) (2005 est.) |
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Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber | grains, tobacco, potatoes, citrus fruits, olives, grapes; sheepherding; commercial fishing negligible |
Airports | 12 (2004 est.) | 5 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
total: 14,026 sq km
land: 13,812 sq km water: 214 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana in 1957 became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. A long series of coups resulted in the suspension of the constitution in 1981 and a ban on political parties. A new constitution, restoring multiparty politics, was approved in 1992. Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS, head of state since 1981, won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR, who defeated former Vice President Atta MILLS in a free and fair election, succeeded him. | The use of the name Montenegro began in the 15th century when the Crnojevic dynasty began to rule the Serbian principality of Zeta; over subsequent centuries Montenegro was able to maintain its independence from the Ottoman Empire. From the 16th to 19th centuries, Montenegro became a theocracy ruled by a series of bishop princes; in 1852, it was transformed into a secular principality. After World War I, Montenegro was absorbed by the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929; at the conclusion of World War II, it became a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. When the latter dissolved in 1992, Montenegro federated with Serbia, first as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and, after 2003, in a looser union of Serbia and Montenegro. In May 2006, Montenegro invoked its right under the Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro to hold a referendum on independence from the state union. The vote for severing ties with Serbia exceeded 55% - the threshold set by the EU - allowing Montenegro to formally declare its independence on 3 June 2006. |
Birth rate | 23.97 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 11.18 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.17 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA |
Capital | Accra | name: Podgorica (administrative capital)
geographic coordinates: 42 26 N, 19 16 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1 hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Cetinje (capital city) |
Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north | Mediterranean climate, hot dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfalls inland |
Coastline | 539 km | 293.5 km |
Constitution | approved 28 April 1992 | 12 October 1992 (was approved by the Assembly); note - Montenegro is currently writing a new constitution set to be presented to Parliament in spring 2007 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
conventional long form: Republic of Montenegro
conventional short form: Montenegro local long form: Republika Crna Gora local short form: Crna Gora former: People's Republic of Montenegro, Socialist Republic of Montenegro |
Death rate | 10.84 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.396 billion (2004 est.) | $NA |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Carlin YATES
embassy: 6th and 10th Lanes, 798/1 Osu, Accra mailing address: P. O. Box 194, Accra telephone: [233] (21) 775-347, 775-348 FAX: [233] (21) 701-813 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Roderick W. MOORE
embassy: Ljubljanska bb, 81000 Podgorica, Montenegro mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [382] 81 225 417 FAX: [382] 81 241 358 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Alan J. KYEREMATEN
chancery: 3512 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 686-4520 FAX: [1] (202) 686-4527 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Miodrag VLAHOVIC
chancery: 1610 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC, 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-6108 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6109 |
Disputes - international | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped rebel fighting in Cote d'Ivoire | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (1999) | $NA |
Economy - overview | Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorer countries in West Africa. Even so, Ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. Gold, timber, and cocoa production are major sources of foreign exchange. The domestic economy continues to revolve around subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 34% of GDP and employs 60% of the work force, mainly small landholders. Ghana opted for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program in 2002. Priorities include tighter monetary and fiscal policies, accelerated privatization, and improvement of social services. Receipts from the gold sector helped sustain GDP growth in 2004. Inflation should ease, but remain a major internal problem. | The republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the MILOSEVIC era and maintained its own central bank, used the euro instead of the Yugoslav dinar as official currency, collected customs tariffs, and managed its own budget. The dissolution of the loose political union between Serbia and Montenegro in 2006 led to separate membership in several international financial institutions, such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. On 18 January 2007, Montenegro joined the World Bank and IMF. Montenegro is pursuing its own membership in the World Trade Organization as well as negotiating a Stabilization and Association agreement with the European Union in anticipation of eventual membership. Severe unemployment remains a key political and economic problem for this entire region. Montenegro has privatized its large aluminum complex - the dominant industry - as well as most of its financial sector, and has begun to attract foreign direct investment in the tourism sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.137 billion kWh (2002) | 18.6 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 500 million kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - production | 6.922 billion kWh (2002) | 2.864 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Bobotov Kuk 2,522 m |
Environment - current issues | recurrent drought in north severely affects agricultural activities; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; poaching and habitat destruction threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water | pollution of coastal waters from sewage outlets, especially in tourist-related areas such as Kotor |
Environment - international 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, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ship Pollution |
Ethnic groups | black African 98.5% (major tribes - Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%, Gurma 3%, Yoruba 1%), European and other 1.5% (1998) | Montenegrin 43%, Serbian 32%, Bosniak 8%, Albanian 5%, other (Muslims, Croats, Roma (Gypsy)) 12% |
Exchange rates | cedis per US dollar - 9,004.6 (2004), 8,677.4 (2003), 7,932.7 (2002), 7,170.8 (2001), 5,455.1 (2000) | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8089 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers; president nominates members subject to approval by Parliament elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: John Agyekum KUFUOR reelected president in election; percent of vote - John KUFUOR 53.4%, John Atta MILLS 43.7% |
chief of state: President Filip VUJANOVIC (since 11 May 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Zeljko STURANOVIC (since 13 November 2006) cabinet: Ministries act as cabinet elections: president elected by direct vote for five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 11 May 2003 (next to be held in 2008); prime minister proposed by president, accepted by Assembly election results: Filip VUJANOVIC elected on the third round; Filip VUJANOVIC 63.3%, Miodrag ZIVKOVIC 30.8% |
Exports | NA | $171.3 million (2003) |
Exports - commodities | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds | - |
Exports - partners | Mexico 69.8%, Netherlands 3.7%, UK 3% (2004) | Switzerland 83.9%, Italy 6.1%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band | a red field bordered by a narrow golden-yellow stripe with the Montenegrin coat of arms centered |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 24.2% services: 41.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W | 42 30 N, 19 18 E |
Geography - note | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake | strategic location along the Adriatic coast |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 46,176 km
paved: 8,496 km unpaved: 37,679 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
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Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; major transit hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and, to a lesser extent, South American cocaine destined for Europe and the US; widespread crime and money laundering problem, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | - |
Imports | NA | $601.7 million (2003) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs | - |
Imports - partners | Nigeria 12.6%, China 11.4%, UK 6.6%, US 6.4%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) | Greece 10.2%, Italy 10.2%, Germany 9.6%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 9.2% (2006) |
Independence | 6 March 1957 (from UK) | 3 June 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | - |
Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building | steelmaking, aluminum, agricultural processing, consumer goods, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 51.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 54.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13% (2004 est.) | 3.4% (2004) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | CE, CEI, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICCt, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Constitutional Court (five judges with nine-year terms); Supreme Court (judges have life tenure) |
Labor force | 10.24 million (2004 est.) | 259,100 (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) | agriculture: 2%
industry: 30% services: 68% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
total: 625 km
border countries: Albania 172 km, Bosnia and Herzegovina 225 km, Croatia 25 km, Serbia 203 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.26%
permanent crops: 9.67% other: 74.07% (2001) |
arable land: 13.7%
permanent crops: 1% other: 85.3% |
Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) | Serbian (official; Ijekavian dialect), Bosnian, Albanian, Croatian |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (230 seats; note - increased from 200 seats in last election; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 128, NDC 92, other 10 |
unicameral Assembly (81 seats; members elected by direct vote for four-year terms; changed from 74 seats in 2006)
elections: last held 10 September 2006 (next to be held 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - Coalition for European Montenegro 40.6%, Serbian List 15.3%, Coalition SNP-NS-DSS 14.8%, PZP 13.9%, Liberals and Bosniaks 3.8%, other (including Albanian minority parties) 11.6%; seats by party - Coalition for European Montenegro 39, Serbian List 12, Coalition SNP/NS/DSS 11, PZP 11, Liberals and Bosniaks 3, Albanian minority parties 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.47 years
male: 57.7 years female: 59.26 years (2005 est.) |
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Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74.8% male: 82.7% female: 67.1% (2003 est.) |
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Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo | Southeastern Europe, between the Adriatic Sea and Serbia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: defined by treaty |
Merchant marine | total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 19,086 GRT/26,185 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 3 foreign-owned: 1 (Brazil 1) (2005) |
total: 4 ships (1000 GRT or over) 9,458 GRT/10,172 DWT
by type: cargo 4 registered in other countries: 3 (Bahamas 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007) |
Military - note | - | Montenegrin plans call for the establishment of a fully professional armed forces |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49.2 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2004) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) | National Day, 13 July (1878) |
Nationality | noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
noun: Montenegrin(s)
adjective: Montenegrin |
Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone | bauxite, hydroelectricity |
Net migration rate | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | - |
Pipelines | refined products 74 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Convention People's Party or CPP [Nii Noi DOWUONA, general secretary]; Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere or EGLE [Owuraku AMOFA, chairman]; Great Consolidated Popular Party or GCPP [Dan LARTY]; National Convention Party or NCP [Sarpong KUMA-KUMA]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Dr. Huudu YAHAYA, general secretary]; New Patriotic Party or NPP [Samuel Arthur ODOI-SYKES]; People's Convention Party or PCP [P. K. DONKOH-AYIFI, acting chairman]; People's Heritage Party or PHP [Emmanuel Alexander ERSKINE]; People's National Convention or PNC [Edward MAHAMA]; Reform Party [Kyeretwie OPUKU, general secretary] | Albanian Alternative or AA [Vesel SINISHTAJ]; Bosniak Party or BS [Rafet HUSOVIC]; Coalition for European Montenegro or DPS-SDP (bloc) [Milo DUKANOVIC] (includes DPS and SDP); Coalition SNP-NS-DSS (bloc) (includes SNP, NS, and DSS); Democratic League-Party of Democratic Prosperity or SPP [Mehmet BARHDI]; Democratic Party of Socialists or DPS [Milo DJUKANOVIC]; Democratic Serbian Party of Montenegro or DSS [Ranko KADIC]; Democratic Union of Albanians or DUA [Ferhat DINOSA]; Liberal Party of Montenegro or LP [Miodrag ZIVKOVIC]; Liberals and the Bosniak Party (bloc) [Miodrag ZIVKOVIC] (includes LP and BS); Movement for Changes or PZP [Nebojsa MEDOJEVIC]; Party of Serb Radicals or SSR [Dusko SEKULIC]; People's Party of Montenegro or NS [Predrag POPOVIC]; People's Socialist Party or NSS [Emilo LABUDOVIC]; Serbian List (bloc) [Andrija MANDIC] (includes SSR, NSS, and SNS); Serbian People's Party of Montenegro or SNS [Andrija MANDIC]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Ranko KRIVOKAPIC]; Socialist People's Party or SNP [Srdjan MILIC] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
Population | 21,029,853
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 2005 est.) |
684,736 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 31.4% (1992 est.) | 12.2% (2003) |
Population growth rate | 1.25% (2005 est.) | -1% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Takoradi, Tema | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 49, shortwave 3 (2001) | 31 (station types NA) (2004) |
Railways | total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
total: 250 km
standard gauge: 250 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified 169 km) (2006) |
Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% | Orthodox, Muslim, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor to fair system; Internet accessible; many rural communities not yet connected; expansion of services is underway
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay; wireless local loop has been installed international: country code - 233; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay link to Panaftel system connects Ghana to its neighbors; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
general assessment: modern telecommunications system with access to European satellites
domestic: GSM wireless service, available through 2 providers with national coverage, is growing rapidly international: country code - 382 (the old code of 381 used by Serbia and Montenegro will also remain in use until Feb 2007); 2 international switches connect the national system |
Telephones - main lines in use | 302,300 (2003) | 353,300 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 799,900 (2003) | 821,800 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2001) | 13 (2004) |
Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area | highly indented coastline with narrow coastal plain backed by rugged high limestone mountains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) | - |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1997 est.) | 27.7% (2005) |
Waterways | 1,293 km
note: 168 km for launches and lighters on Volta, Ankobra, and Tano rivers; 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways on Lake Volta (2003) |
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