Grenada (2002) | Benin (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick | 12 provinces; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Couffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.9% (male 16,213; female 15,863)
15-64 years: 60.3% (male 28,460; female 25,307) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 1,546; female 1,822) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.2% (male 1,616,138; female 1,585,463)
15-64 years: 50.5% (male 1,665,439; female 1,764,966) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 65,877; female 89,742) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001) |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 5 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
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. | Dahomey gained its independence from France in 1960; the name was changed to Benin in 1975. From 1974 to 1989 the country was a socialist state; free elections were reestablished in 1991. |
Birth rate | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 43.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
revenues: $377.4 million
expenditures: $561.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
Capital | Saint George's | Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government |
Climate | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 121 km | 121 km |
Constitution | 19 December 1973 | December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 14.52 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $196 million (2000) (2000) | $1.18 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada; Charge d'Affairs Nadia TONGOUR
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 Pamela E. BRIDGEWATER
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70 |
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 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York |
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 | none | Benin and Niger have refered to the ICJ the dispute over l'Ete and 14 smaller disputed islands in the Niger River, which has never been delimited; with Nigeria, several villages are in dispute along the Okpara River and only 35 km of the 436 km boundary are demarcated; the Benin-Niger-Nigeria tripoint remains undemarcated; Benin accuses Togo of moving boundary markers and stationing troops in its territory; two villages are in dispute with Burkina Faso |
Economic aid - recipient | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) | $342.6 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Despite government steadying of annual economic growth in recent years through progress in fiscal reform and prudent macroeconomic management, a downturn in tourist arrivals in 2001 threatens government spending in 2002. Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange, although it also supports a small agriculture sector and a developing offshore financial industry. Short-term concerns include a rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output averaged a stable 5% in the past five years, but rapid population rise 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. The 2001 privatization policy should continue in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of initial government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation. |
Electricity - consumption | 102.3 million kWh (2000) | 523.2 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 300 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 110 million kWh (2000) | 240 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 17%
hydro: 83% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5% , and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 |
Exchange rates | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro |
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; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
chief of state: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; runoff election held 22 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Mathieu KEREKOU reelected president; percent of vote - Mathieu KEREKOU 84.1%, Bruno AMOUSSOU 15.9% note: the four top-ranking contenders following the first-round presidential elections were: Mathieu KEREKOU (incumbent) 45.4%, Nicephore SOGOLO (former president) 27.1%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI (National Assembly Speaker) 12.6%, and Bruno AMOUSSOU (Minister of State) 8.6%; the second-round balloting, originally scheduled for 18 March 2001, was postponed four days because both SOGOLO and HOUNGBEDJI withdrew alleging electoral fraud; this left KEREKOU to run against his own Minister of State, AMOUSSOU, in what was termed a "friendly match" |
Exports | $78 million (2000 est.) | $35.3 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Exports - commodities | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) | Brazil, France, Indonesia, Thailand, Morocco, Portugal, Cote d'Ivoire (2001) |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $424 million (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6.8 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
agriculture: 36%
industry: 14% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,040 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.5% (2001 est.) | 5.4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 07 N, 61 40 W | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
Geography - note | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
Highways | total: 1,040 km
paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
total: 6,787 km
paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,430 km (1997 est.) |
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 narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure |
Imports | $270 million (2000 est.) | $437.6 million c.i.f. (2000) |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) | France, US, China, Cote d'Ivoire, Netherlands, Japan (2001) |
Independence | 7 February 1974 (from UK) | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1997 est.) | 8.3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction | textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001) |
Infant mortality rate | 14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 88.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2001 est.) | 3% (2001 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 (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | 4 (2002) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
Labor force | 42,300 (1996) (1996) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 15.28%
permanent crops: 1.36% other: 83.36% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 March 1999 (next to be held 30 March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RB 27, PRD 11, FARD-ALAFIA 10, PSD 9, MADEP 6, Alliance E'toile 4, IPD 4, other 12 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.52 years
male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 49.69 years
male: 48.81 years female: 50.61 years (2002 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: 37.5% male: 52.2% female: 23.6% (2000) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Nigeria and Togo |
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 (2002 est.) | none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard | Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force), National Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $27 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.2% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,509,760
females age 15-49: 1,536,036 note: both sexes are liable for military service (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 771,373
females age 15-49: 778,730 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 71,278
females: 70,088 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
Natural hazards | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
Natural resources | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
Net migration rate | -15.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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] | African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Alliance of the Social Democratic Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Front for Renewal and Development or FARD-ALAFIA [Saka SALEY]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Bertin BORNA]; Movement for Citizens' Commitment and Awakening or MERCI [Severin ADJOVI]; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties; the Coalition of Democratic Forces, [Gatien HOUNGBEDJI], an alliance of parties and organizations supporting President KEREKOU |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 89,211 (July 2002 est.) | 6,787,625
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 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 37% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.02% (2002 est.) | 2.91% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Grenville, Saint George's | Cotonou, Porto-Novo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | 660,000 (2000) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 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: NA
domestic: fair system of open wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | 27,000 (1997) | 51,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 976 (1997) | 55,500 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | volcanic in origin with central mountains | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 6.14 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.5% (1999) (1999) | NA% |
Waterways | none | streams navigable along small sections, important only locally |