Guam (2007) | Ecuador (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US) | 24 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Azuay, Bolivar, Canar, Carchi, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Galapagos, Guayas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Manabi, Morona-Santiago, Napo, Orellana, Pastaza, Pichincha, Santa Elena, Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.6% (male 25,686/female 23,938)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 57,023/female 54,872) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 5,592/female 6,345) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 32.6% (male 2,282,319/female 2,196,685)
15-64 years: 62.3% (male 4,271,848/female 4,301,149) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 330,302/female 373,377) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef | bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane; cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products; balsa wood; fish, shrimp |
Airports | 5 (2007) | 406 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 104
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 26 under 914 m: 54 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 302
914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 268 (2007) |
Area | total: 541.3 sq km
land: 541.3 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 283,560 sq km
land: 276,840 sq km water: 6,720 sq km note: includes Galapagos Islands |
Area - comparative | three times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Nevada |
Background | Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The military installation on the island is one of the most strategically important US bases in the Pacific. | What is now Ecuador formed part of the northern Inca Empire until the Spanish conquest in 1533. Quito became a seat of Spanish colonial government in 1563 and part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada in 1717. The territories of the Viceroyalty - New Granada (Colombia), Venezuela, and Quito - gained their independence between 1819 and 1822 and formed a federation known as Gran Colombia. When Quito withdrew in 1830, the traditional name was changed in favor of the "Republic of the Equator." Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in a series of conflicts with its neighbors. A border war with Peru that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Although Ecuador marked 25 years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by political instability. Protests in Quito have contributed to the mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected Presidents. |
Birth rate | 18.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 21.91 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $319.6 million
expenditures: $427.8 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $13.1 billion
expenditures: planned $11.3 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | name: Hagatna (Agana)
geographic coordinates: 13 28 N, 144 44 E time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Quito
geographic coordinates: 0 13 S, 78 30 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season (January to June), rainy season (July to December); little seasonal temperature variation | tropical along coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations; tropical in Amazonian jungle lowlands |
Coastline | 125.5 km | 2,237 km |
Constitution | Organic Act of Guam, 1 August 1950 | 10 August 1998 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan local short form: Guahan |
conventional long form: Republic of Ecuador
conventional short form: Ecuador local long form: Republica del Ecuador local short form: Ecuador |
Death rate | 4.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $17.56 billion (31 October 2007) |
Dependency status | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Linda L. JEWELL
embassy: Avenida 12 de Octubre y Avenida Patria, Quito mailing address: APO AA 34039 telephone: [593] (2) 256-2890 FAX: [593] (2) 250-2052 consulate(s) general: Guayaquil |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Benigno GALLEGOS Chiriboga
chancery: 2535 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7200 FAX: [1] (202) 667-3482 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Jersey City (New Jersey), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, Washington, DC |
Disputes - international | none | organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border, which thousands of Colombians also cross to escape the violence in their home country |
Economic aid - recipient | Guam receives large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143 million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees stationed in Guam (2001 est.) | $209.5 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | The economy depends largely on US military spending and tourism. Total US grants, wage payments, and procurement outlays amounted to $1.3 billion in 2004. Over the past 30 years, the tourist industry has grown to become the largest income source following national defense. The Guam economy continues to experience expansion in both its tourism and military sectors. | Ecuador is substantially dependent on its petroleum resources, which have accounted for more than half of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of public sector revenues in recent years. In 1999/2000, Ecuador suffered a severe economic crisis, with GDP contracted by more than 6%, with a significant increase in poverty. The banking system also collapsed, and Ecuador defaulted on its external debt later that year. In March 2000, Congress approved a series of structural reforms that also provided for the adoption of the US dollar as legal tender. Dollarization stabilized the economy, and positive growth returned in the years that followed, helped by high oil prices, remittances, and increased non-traditional exports. From 2002-2006 the economy grew 5.5%, the highest five-year average in 25 years. The poverty rate declined but remained high at 38% in 2006. In 2006 the government of Alfredo PALACIO (2005-07) seized the assets of Occidental Petroleum for alleged contract violations and imposed a windfall revenue tax on foreign oil companies, leading to the suspension of free trade negotiations with the US. These measures, combined with chronic underinvestment in the state oil company, Petroecuador, led to a drop in petroleum production in 2007. PALACIO's successor, Rafael CORREA, raised the specter of debt default - but Ecuador has paid its debt on time. He also decreed a higher windfall revenue tax on private oil companies, then sought to renegotiate their contracts to overcome the debilitating effect of the tax. This generated economic uncertainty; private investment has dropped and economic growth has slowed significantly. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.667 billion kWh (2005) | 8.855 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 16 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 1.723 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.793 billion kWh (2005) | 12.94 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chimborazo 6,267 m |
Environment - current issues | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution; pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Amazon Basin and Galapagos Islands |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Chamorro 37.1%, Filipino 26.3%, other Pacific islander 11.3%, white 6.9%, other Asian 6.3%, other ethnic origin or race 2.3%, mixed 9.8% (2000 census) | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Amerindian 25%, Spanish and others 7%, black 3% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | 1 the US dollar is used; the sucre was eliminated in 2000 |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Felix P. CAMACHO (since 6 January 2003); Lieutenant Governor Dr. Michael W. CRUZ (since 1 January 2007) cabinet: heads of executive departments; appointed by the governor with the consent of the Guam legislature elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as Guam, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term (can serve two consecutive terms, then must wait a full term before running again); election last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2010) election results: Felix P. CAMACHO reelected governor; Dr. Michael W. CRUZ elected lieutenant governor; percent of vote - NA |
chief of state: President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: the president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held 15 October 2006 with a runoff election on 26 November 2006 (next to be held in October 2010) election results: Rafael CORREA Delgado elected president; percent of vote - Rafael CORREA Delgado 56.7%; Alvaro NOBOA 43.3% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | 420,600 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products | petroleum, bananas, cut flowers, shrimp, cacao, coffee, hemp, wood, fish |
Exports - partners | Japan 67.2%, Singapore 11.6%, UK 4.8% (2006) | US 53.6%, Peru 8.2%, Colombia 5.6%, Chile 4.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on all four sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipse containing a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm tree with the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is the national flag | three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue, and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of the flag; similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 35% services: 54% (2007 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2.6% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 28 N, 144 47 E | 2 00 S, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean | Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 35% note: data for urban households only (October 2006) |
Illicit drugs | - | significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru, with over half of the US-bound cocaine passing through Ecuadorian Pacific waters; importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics; attractive location for cash-placement by drug traffickers laundering money because of dollarization and weak anti-money-laundering regime; increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents |
Imports | NA bbl/day | 44,680 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods | industrial materials, fuels and lubricants, nondurable consumer goods |
Imports - partners | Singapore 50%, South Korea 21.4%, Japan 14%, Hong Kong 4.6% (2006) | US 23.1%, Colombia 13.3%, Brazil 7.3%, Panama 4% (2006) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 24 May 1822 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1.4% (2007 est.) |
Industries | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles | petroleum, food processing, textiles, wood products, chemicals |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 22.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2005 est.) | 3.3% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | IOC, SPC, UPU | CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 8,650 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (according to the Constitution, new justices are elected by the full Supreme Court; in December 2004, however, Congress successfully replaced the entire court via a simple-majority resolution) |
Labor force | 62,050 (2002 est.) | 4.55 million (urban) (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 26%
industry: 10% services: 64% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2001) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,010 km
border countries: Colombia 590 km, Peru 1,420 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.64%
permanent crops: 18.18% other: 78.18% (2005) |
arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 4.81% other: 89.48% (2005) |
Languages | English 38.3%, Chamorro 22.2%, Philippine languages 22.2%, other Pacific island languages 6.8%, Asian languages 7%, other languages 3.5% (2000 census) | Spanish (official), Amerindian languages (especially Quechua) |
Legal system | modeled on US; US federal laws apply | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Republican Party 8, Democratic Party 7 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 1 |
unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (100 seats; members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRIAN 28; PSP 24; PSC 13; ID 7; PRE 6; MUPP-NP 6; RED 5; UDC 5; other 6; note - defections by members of National Congress are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties; as of 29 November 2007, Congress is on indefinite recess |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.76 years
male: 75.69 years female: 82.01 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 76.62 years
male: 73.74 years female: 79.63 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92.3% female: 89.7% (2001 census) |
Location | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru |
Map references | Oceania | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 200 nm
continental shelf: 100 nm from 2,500 meter isobath |
Merchant marine | - | total: 33 ships (1000 GRT or over) 190,931 GRT/306,280 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 22, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 2 (Philippines 1, US 1) registered in other countries: 3 (China 1, Panama 2) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.8% (2006) |
National holiday | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) | Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809) |
Nationality | noun: Guamanian(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Guamanian |
noun: Ecuadorian(s)
adjective: Ecuadorian |
Natural hazards | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) | frequent earthquakes, landslides, volcanic activity; floods; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) | petroleum, fish, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -2.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | extra heavy crude oil 578 km; gas 71 km; oil 1,389 km; refined products 1,185 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party [Philip J. FLORES] (controls the legislature) | Alianza PAIS Movement [Rafael Vicente CORREA Delgado]; Christian Democratic Union or UDC [Diego ORDONEZ Guerrero]; Concentration of Popular Forces or CFP; Democratic Left or ID [Andres PAEZ Benalcazar]; Ethical and Democratic Network or RED [Leon ROLDOS]; National Action Institutional Renewal Party or PRIAN [Alvaro NOBOA]; Pachakutik Plurinational Unity Movement - New Country or MUPP-NP [Gilberto TALAHUA]; Patriotic Society Party or PSP [Lucio GUTIERREZ Borbua]; Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Ciro GUZMAN Aldaz]; Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director]; Social Christian Party or PSC [Pascual DEL CIOPPO]; Socialist Party - Broad Front or PS-FA [Gustavo AYALA Cruz] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Luis MACAS, president]; Coordinator of Social Movements or CMS [F. Napoleon SANTOS]; Federation of Indigenous Evangelists of Ecuador or FEINE [Marco MURILLO, president]; National Federation of Indigenous Afro-Ecuatorianos and Peasants or FENOCIN [Pedro DE LA CRUZ, president] |
Population | 173,456 (July 2007 est.) | 13,755,680 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 23% (2001 est.) | 38.3% (2006) |
Population growth rate | 1.4% (2007 est.) | 1.554% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2005) | AM 392, FM 35, shortwave 29 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 966 km
narrow gauge: 966 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) | Roman Catholic 95%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.073 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.881 male(s)/female total population: 1.037 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.993 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.885 male(s)/female total population: 1.002 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65, optional for other eligible voters |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern system, integrated with US facilities for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers
domestic: modern digital system, including cellular mobile service and local access to the Internet international: country code - 1-671; major landing point for submarine cables between Asia and the US (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for major carriers linking the US and Asia); satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: generally elementary but being expanded
domestic: fixed-line services provided by three state-owned enterprises; plans to transfer the state-owned operators to private ownership have repeatedly failed; fixed-line density stands at about 13 per 100 persons; mobile cellular use has surged and has a subscribership of nearly 65 per 100 persons international: country code - 593; landing point for the PAN-AM submarine telecommunications cable that provides links to the west coast of South America, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, and extending onward to Aruba and the US Virgin Islands in the Caribbean; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 80,000 (2001) | 1.754 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 98,000 (2004) | 8.485 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2006) | 7 (plus 14 repeaters) (2000) |
Terrain | volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in center, mountains in south | coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente) |
Total fertility rate | 2.57 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.63 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.4% (2002 est.) | 9.8% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2006) |