Grenada (2001) | Liberia (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick | 15 counties; Bomi, Bong, Gbarpolu, Grand Bassa, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, River Cess, River Gee, Sinoe |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
37.05% (male 16,739; female 16,318) 15-64 years: 59.03% (male 27,850; female 24,820) 65 years and over: 3.92% (male 1,592; female 1,908) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.1% (male 656,016/female 653,734)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 816,443/female 832,152) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 40,591/female 43,068) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables | rubber, coffee, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, sugarcane, bananas; sheep, goats; timber |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 53 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 51
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 38 (2006) |
Area | total:
340 sq km land: 340 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 111,370 sq km
land: 96,320 sq km water: 15,050 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | One of the smallest independent countries in the western hemisphere, Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year. | Settlement of freed slaves from the US in what is today Liberia began in 1822; by 1847, the Americo-Liberians were able to establish a republic. William TUBMAN, president from 1944-71, did much to promote foreign investment and to bridge the economic, social, and political gaps between the descendents of the original settlers and the inhabitants of the interior. In 1980, a military coup led by Samuel DOE assassinated President William TOLBERT (1971-80) and ushered in a decade of authoritarian rule followed by a prolonged civil war, in which DOE himself was killed. In August 2003, a comprehensive peace agreement ended 14 years of intermittent fighting and prompted the resignation of former president Charles TAYLOR, who was exiled to Nigeria. After two years of rule by a transitional government, democratic elections in late 2005 brought President Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF to power. The UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), which maintains a strong presence throughout the country, completed a disarmament program for former combatants in late 2004, but the security situation is still volatile and the process of rebuilding the social and economic structure of this war-torn country remains sluggish. |
Birth rate | 23.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 44.77 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$85.8 million expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
revenues: $85.4 million
expenditures: $90.5 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Saint George's | name: Monrovia
geographic coordinates: 6 18 N, 10 47 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds | tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers |
Coastline | 121 km | 579 km |
Constitution | 19 December 1973 | 6 January 1986 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Grenada |
conventional long form: Republic of Liberia
conventional short form: Liberia |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | - |
Death rate | 7.82 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 23.1 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $182.8 million (1998) | $3.2 billion (2005 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada embassy: Point Salines, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's, Grenada, West Indies telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Donald E. BOOTH
embassy: 111 United Nations Drive, P. O. Box 10-0098, Mamba Point, 1000 Monrovia, 10 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [231] 226-370 through 226-380 FAX: [231] 226-148 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Charles A. MINOR
chancery: 5201 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 723-0437 FAX: [1] (202) 723-0436 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | although Liberia's domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs was declared over in 2003, civil unrest persists, and in 2004, 133,000 Liberian refugees remained in Guinea, 72,000 in Cote d'Ivoire, 67,000 in Sierra Leone, and 43,000 in Ghana; Liberia, in turn, shelters refugees fleeing turmoil in Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone; since 2003, the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) has maintained about 18,000 peacekeepers in Liberia; the Cote d'Ivoire Government accuses Liberia of supporting Ivoirian rebels; UN sanctions ban Liberia from exporting diamonds and timber |
Economic aid - recipient | $8.3 million (1995) | $94 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | In this island economy progress in fiscal reforms and prudent macroeconomic management have kept annual growth steady since 1998. The increase in economic activity has been led by construction and trade. Tourist facilities are being expanded; tourism is the leading foreign exchange earner. Major short-term concerns are the rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. Grenada shares a common central bank and a common currency with seven other members of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). | Civil war and government mismanagement have destroyed much of Liberia's economy, especially the infrastructure in and around Monrovia, while continued international sanctions on diamonds and timber exports will limit growth prospects for the foreseeable future. Many businessmen have fled the country, taking capital and expertise with them. Some have returned, but many will not. Richly endowed with water, mineral resources, forests, and a climate favorable to agriculture, Liberia had been a producer and exporter of basic products - primarily raw timber and rubber. Local manufacturing, mainly foreign owned, had been small in scope. The departure of the former president, Charles TAYLOR, to Nigeria in August 2003, the establishment of the all-inclusive Transitional Government, and the arrival of a UN mission have helped defuse the political crisis, but have done little to encourage economic development. Wealthy international donors, who are ready to assist reconstruction efforts, are withholding funding until Liberia's National Assembly signs onto a Governance and Economic Management Action Plan (GEMAP). The Plan was created in October 2005 by the International Contact Group for Liberia to help ensure transparent revenue collection and allocation - something that was lacking under the Transitional Government and that has limited Liberia's economic recovery. The reconstruction of infrastructure and the raising of incomes in this ravaged economy will largely depend on generous financial support and technical assistance from donor countries. |
Electricity - consumption | 111.6 million kWh (1999) | 473.8 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 120 million kWh (1999) | 509.4 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Wuteve 1,380 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | tropical rain forest deforestation; soil erosion; loss of biodiversity; pollution of coastal waters from oil residue and raw sewage |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | black 82% some South Asians (East Indians) and Europeans, trace Arawak/Carib Amerindian | indigenous African 95% (including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, Dei, Bella, Mandingo, and Mende), Americo-Liberians 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the US who had been slaves), Congo People 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean who had been slaves) |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Liberian dollars per US dollar - NA (2005), 54.906 (2004), 59.379 (2003), 61.754 (2002), 48.583 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; prime minister appointed by the governor general from among the members of the House of Assembly |
chief of state: President Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF (since 16 January 2006); note - the President is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF (since 6 January 2006); note - the President is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8 November 2005 (next to be held NA 2011) election results: Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF elected president; percent of vote, second round - Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF (UP) 59.6%, George WEAH (CDC) 40.4% note: a UN-brokered cease-fire among warring factions and the Liberian Government resulted in the August 2003 resignation of former president, Charles TAYLOR; a jointly agreed upon replacement, Chairman Gyude BRYANT, assumed office as head of the National Transitional Government on 14 October 2003; free elections were held 11 October 2005, with a runoff election between the two leading candidates on 8 November 2005 |
Exports | $62.3 million (2000 est.) | $910 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace | rubber, timber, iron, diamonds, cocoa, coffee |
Exports - partners | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) | Belgium 41.4%, Spain 11.6%, US 9.1%, Malaysia 5.5%, Thailand 4.6%, Poland 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions | 11 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a white five-pointed star on a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner; the design was based on the US flag |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $394 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
9.7% industry: 15% services: 75.3% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 76.9%
industry: 5.4% services: 17.7% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 7% (2000 est.) | 9.8% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 07 N, 61 40 W | 6 30 N, 9 30 W |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | facing the Atlantic Ocean, the coastline is characterized by lagoons, mangrove swamps, and river-deposited sandbars; the inland grassy plateau supports limited agriculture |
Highways | total:
1,040 km paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US | transshipment point for Southeast and Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine for the European and US markets; corruption, criminal activity, arms-dealing, and diamond trade provide significant potential for money laundering, but the lack of well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a major money-laundering center |
Imports | $217.5 million (2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) | fuels, chemicals, machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) | South Korea 37.9%, Japan 21.1%, Singapore 14.2%, Croatia 4.7% (2005) |
Independence | 7 February 1974 (from UK) | 26 July 1847 |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction | rubber processing, palm oil processing, timber, diamonds |
Infant mortality rate | 14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 155.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 171.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 139.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 15% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 30 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 42,300 (1996) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) | agriculture: 70%
industry: 8% services: 22% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,585 km
border countries: Guinea 563 km, Cote d'Ivoire 716 km, Sierra Leone 306 km |
Land use | arable land:
15% permanent crops: 18% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 9% other: 55% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 3.43%
permanent crops: 1.98% other: 94.59% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | English 20% (official), some 20 ethnic group languages, of which a few can be written and are used in correspondence |
Legal system | based on English common law | dual system of statutory law based on Anglo-American common law for the modern sector and customary law based on unwritten tribal practices for indigenous sector; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 13-member body, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 18 January 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NNP 14, GULP 1 |
bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (30 seats - number of seats changed in 11 October 2005 elections; members elected by popular vote to serve nine-year terms) and the House of Representatives (64 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 October 2005 (next to be held in 2014); House of Representatives - last held 11 October 2005 (next to be held NA 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - COTOL 7, NPP 4, CDC 3, LP 3, UP 3, APD 3, other 7; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDC 15, LP 9, UP 8, COTOL 8, APD 5, NPP 4, other 15 note: the current six-year term for junior senators - those who received the second most votes in the election - is mandated by the Liberian constitution to stagger Senate elections and ensure continuity of government |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
64.52 years male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 39.65 years
male: 37.99 years female: 41.35 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.5% male: 73.3% female: 41.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 1,687 ships (1000 GRT or over) 62,522,787 GRT/96,776,521 DWT
by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 322, cargo 83, chemical tanker 199, combination ore/oil 2, container 477, liquefied gas 75, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 397, refrigerated cargo 76, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 35 foreign-owned: 1,611 (Argentina 7, Australia 2, Austria 13, Bahamas, The 1, Bermuda 1, Brazil 3, Canada 2, China 35, Croatia 7, Cyprus 3, Denmark 8, Estonia 1, France 3, Germany 587, Greece 267, Hong Kong 37, India 3, Indonesia 1, Isle of Man 5, Israel 5, Italy 16, Japan 102, South Korea 3, Kuwait 1, Latvia 14, Lebanon 2, Mexico 1, Monaco 10, Netherlands 29, Norway 38, Poland 14, Qatar 2, Russia 77, Saudi Arabia 24, Singapore 28, Slovenia 2, Sweden 8, Switzerland 7, Taiwan 69, Turkey 1, UAE 18, UK 41, Ukraine 16, Uruguay 3, US 93, unknown 1) (2006) |
Military branches | Royal Grenada Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL): Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $67.4 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 7.5% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) | Independence Day, 26 July (1847) |
Nationality | noun:
Grenadian(s) adjective: Grenadian |
noun: Liberian(s)
adjective: Liberian |
Natural hazards | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November | dust-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to March) |
Natural resources | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors | iron ore, timber, diamonds, gold, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -15.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 27.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: at least 238,500 Liberian refugees are in surrounding countries; the uncertain security situation has hindered their ability to return (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Herbert PREUDHOMME]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [leader vacant]; New National Party or NNP [George McGUIRE] | Alliance for Peace and Democracy or APD [Togba-na TIPOTEH]; Coalition for the Transformation of Liberia or COTOL; Congress for Democratic Change or CDC [George WEAH]; Liberian Action Party or LAP [H. Varney SHERMAN]; Liberty Party or LP [Charles BRUMSKINE]; National Patriotic Party or NPP [Cyril ALLEN]; Unity Party or UP [Charles CLARKE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 89,227 (July 2001 est.) | 3,042,004 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 80% |
Population growth rate | -0.06% (2001 est.) | 4.91% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Grenville, Saint George's | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 490 km
standard gauge: 345 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 145 km 1.067-m gauge note: railway is inoperable because of damage suffered during the civil war (2005) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% | indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
automatic, islandwide telephone system domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad |
general assessment: the limited services available are found almost exclusively in the capital Monrovia
domestic: fully automatic system with very low density of .23 fixed main lines per 100 persons; limited wireless service available international: country code - 231; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 27,000 (1997) | 6,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 976 (1997) | 160,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (plus four low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | volcanic in origin with central mountains | mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast |
Total fertility rate | 2.54 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.02 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1997) | 85% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |