Guam (2007) | Jamaica (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US) | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland |
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:
29.7% (male 405,189; female 386,555) 15-64 years: 63.52% (male 845,226; female 847,944) 65 years and over: 6.78% (male 80,667; female 100,055) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk |
Airports | 5 (2007) | 35 (2000 est.) |
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:
11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
24 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 541.3 sq km
land: 541.3 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
10,990 sq km land: 10,830 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | three times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 18.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $319.6 million
expenditures: $427.8 million (2002 est.) |
revenues:
$2.23 billion expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million (FY99/00 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) |
Kingston |
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; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 125.5 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | Organic Act of Guam, 1 August 1950 | 6 August 1962 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan local short form: Guahan |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Jamaica |
Currency | - | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
Death rate | 4.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $4.7 billion (2000 est.) |
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 Stanley Louis MCLELLAND embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard Leighton BERNAL chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
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.) | $102.7 million (1995) |
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. | Key sectors in this island economy are bauxite (alumina and bauxite account for more than half of exports) and tourism. Since assuming office in 1992, Prime Minister PATTERSON has eliminated most price controls, streamlined tax schedules, and privatized government enterprises. Continued tight monetary and fiscal policies have helped slow inflation - although inflationary pressures are mounting - and stabilize the exchange rate, but have resulted in the slowdown of economic growth (moving from 1.5% in 1992 to 0.5% in 1995). In 1996, GDP showed negative growth (-1.4%) and remained negative through 1999. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; the weak financial condition of business in general resulting in receiverships or closures and downsizings of companies; the shift in investment portfolios to non-productive, short-term high yield instruments; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt for government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions in 1999-2000 led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment in the productive sectors, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, stabilizing the labor environment, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.667 billion kWh (2005) | 6.073 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.793 billion kWh (2005) | 6.53 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
92.28% hydro: 1.36% nuclear: 0% other: 6.36% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
Environment - current issues | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, 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) | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 45.557 (January 2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997), 37.120 (1996) |
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:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum |
Exports - partners | Japan 67.2%, Singapore 11.6%, UK 4.8% (2006) | US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.8%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $9.7 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
7.4% industry: 35.2% services: 57.4% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 0.2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 28 N, 144 47 E | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal |
Highways | - | total:
19,000 km paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 28.9% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | - | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers |
Imports - partners | Singapore 50%, South Korea 21.4%, Japan 14%, Hong Kong 4.6% (2006) | US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products |
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.) |
14.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2005 est.) | 8.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | IOC, SPC, UPU | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 21 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 350 sq km (1993 est.) |
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 (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 62,050 (2002 est.) | 1.13 million (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 26%
industry: 10% services: 64% (2004 est.) |
services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.64%
permanent crops: 18.18% other: 78.18% (2005) |
arable land:
14% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 17% other: 39% (1993 est.) |
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) | English, Creole |
Legal system | modeled on US; US federal laws apply | based on English common law; 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 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 18 December 1997 (next to be held by March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PNP 50, JLP 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.76 years
male: 75.69 years female: 82.01 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
75.42 years male: 73.45 years female: 77.49 years (2001 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 has ever attended school total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,930 GRT/3,065 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Jamaica Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
736,627 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
517,077 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
27,729 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) |
Nationality | noun: Guamanian(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Guamanian |
noun:
Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -7.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 10 km |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party [Philip J. FLORES] (controls the legislature) | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 173,456 (July 2007 est.) | 2,665,636 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 23% (2001 est.) | 34.2% (1992 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.4% (2007 est.) | 0.51% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2005) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.215 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
370 km standard gauge: 370 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km belong to the Jamaica Railway Corporation in common carrier service, but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
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:
fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 80,000 (2001) | 353,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 98,000 (2004) | 54,640 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2006) | 7 (1997) |
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 | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 2.57 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.4% (2002 est.) | 16% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |