Guyana (2001) | New Zealand (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo | 16 regions; Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Nelson, Northland, Otago, Southland, Taranaki, Tasman, Waikato, Manawatu-Wanganui, Wellington, West Coast |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
28.19% (male 100,194; female 96,309) 15-64 years: 66.89% (male 234,976; female 231,360) 65 years and over: 4.92% (male 15,324; female 19,018) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.9% (male 443,837; female 423,118)
15-64 years: 66.5% (male 1,318,751; female 1,307,796) 65 years and over: 11.6% (male 199,722; female 258,083) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugar, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest and fishery potential not exploited | wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, vegetables; wool, beef, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 113 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 46
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
45 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
total: 67
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 26 under 914 m: 39 (2002) |
Area | total:
214,970 sq km land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
total: 268,680 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km note: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Idaho | about the size of Colorado |
Background | Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966 and became a republic in 1970. In 1989 Guyana launched an Economic Recovery Program, which marked a dramatic reversal from a state-controlled, socialist economy towards a more open, free market system. Results through the first decade have proven encouraging. | The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances. |
Birth rate | 17.92 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 14.14 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$220.1 million expenditures: $286.4 million, including capital expenditures of $86.6 million (1998) |
revenues: $29.2 billion
expenditures: $31.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002) |
Capital | Georgetown | Wellington |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January) | temperate with sharp regional contrasts |
Coastline | 459 km | 15,134 km |
Constitution | 6 October 1980 | consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments and The Constitution Act 1986 which is the principal formal charter |
Country name | conventional long form:
Co-operative Republic of Guyana conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: New Zealand abbreviation: NZ |
Currency | Guyanese dollar (GYD) | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.54 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.1 billion (2000) | $33 billion (2002 est.) |
Dependent areas | - | Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ronald D. GODARD embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown telephone: [592] (2) 54900 through 54909, 57960 through 57969 FAX: [592] (2) 58497 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Charles J. SWINDELLS
embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington mailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, APO AP 96531-1034 telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000 FAX: [64] (4) 472-3478 consulate(s) general: Auckland |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Dr. Ali Odeen ISHMAEL chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador L. John WOOD
chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5227 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | all of the area west of the Essequibo (river) claimed by Venezuela; Suriname claims area between New (Upper Courantyne) and Courantyne/Kutari [Koetari] rivers (all headwaters of the Courantyne) | territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency) |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $99.7 million |
Economic aid - recipient | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) | - |
Economy - overview | Severe drought and political turmoil contributed to Guyana's negative growth of -1.8% for 1998 following six straight years of growth of 5% or better. Growth came back to a positive 1.8% in 1999 and 3% in 2000. Underlying growth factors have included expansion in the key agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiative, a more realistic exchange rate, a moderate inflation rate, and continued support by international organizations. President JAGDEO, the former finance minister, is taking steps to reform the economy, including drafting an investment code and restructuring the inefficient and unresponsive public sector. Problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government must persist in efforts to manage its sizable external debt and attract new investment. | Since 1984 the government has accomplished major economic restructuring, transforming New Zealand from an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British market access to a more industrialized, free market economy that can compete globally. This dynamic growth has boosted real incomes (but left behind many at the bottom of the ladder), broadened and deepened the technological capabilities of the industrial sector, and contained inflationary pressures. While per capita incomes have been rising, however, they remain below the level of the four largest EU economies, and there is some government concern that New Zealand is not closing the gap. New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade - particularly in agricultural products - to drive growth, and it has been affected by the global economic slowdown and the slump in commodity prices. Thus far the New Zealand economy has been relatively resilient, although growth may slow to 2.5% in 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 423.2 million kWh (1999) | 34.88 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 455 million kWh (1999) | 37.51 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
98.9% hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 31.6%
hydro: 57.8% nuclear: 0% other: 10.7% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Aoraki-Mount Cook 3,754 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation | deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by species introduced from outside |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic Seals, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | East Indian 49%, black 32%, mixed 12%, Amerindian 6%, white and Chinese 1% | New Zealand European 74.5%, Maori 9.7%, other European 4.6%, Pacific Islander 3.8%, Asian and others 7.4% |
Exchange rates | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - 184.1 (November 2000), 182.2 (2000), 178.0 (1999), 150.5 (1998), 142.4 (1997), 140.4 (1996) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.16 (2002), 2.38 (2001), 2.2 (2000), 1.89 (1999), 1.87 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President JAGAN head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since NA December 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by the majority party in the National Assembly following legislative elections, which must be held at least every five years; elections last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Helen CLARK (since 10 December 1999) and Deputy Prime Minister Michael CULLEN (since NA July 2002) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation 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 a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | $570 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 30,220 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber | dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery |
Exports - partners | US 22%, Canada 22%, UK 18%, Netherlands Antilles 11%, Jamaica (1999) | Australia 20.3%, US 15.5%, Japan 11.5%, UK 4.8%, China 4.6%, South Korea 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $78.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
34.7% industry: 32.5% services: 32.8% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 23% services: 69% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 3.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 5 00 N, 59 00 W | 41 00 S, 174 00 E |
Geography - note | - | about 80% of the population lives in cities; Wellington is the southernmost national capital in the world |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
7,970 km paved: 590 km unpaved: 7,380 km (1996) |
total: 92,053 km
paved: 57,809 km (including at least 190 km of expressways) unpaved: 34,244 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1991 est.) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis | - |
Imports | $660 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | 119,700 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food | machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics, textiles, plastics |
Imports - partners | US 29%, Trinidad and Tobago 18%, Netherlands Antilles 16%, UK 7%, Japan (1999) | Australia 22.1%, US 13.6%, Japan 12%, China 8%, Germany 5.2% (2002) |
Independence | 26 May 1966 (from UK) | 26 September 1907 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.1% (1997 est.) | 3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, fishing (shrimp), textiles, gold mining | food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining |
Infant mortality rate | 38.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 6.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.9% (2000 est.) | 2.7% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ABEDA, ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, C, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 36 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,300 sq km (1993 est.) | 2,850 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature; Judicial Court of Appeal; High Court | High Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 245,492 (1992) | 1.92 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | services 65%, industry 25%, agriculture 10% (1995) |
Land boundaries | total:
2,462 km border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 84% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 5.8%
permanent crops: 6.44% other: 87.76% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu | English (official), Maori (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English law, with special land legislation and land courts for the Maori; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (65 seats, 53 elected by popular vote, 10 elected by the ten Regional Democratic Councils, and 2 elected by the National Congress of Local Democratic Organs; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPP/C 34, PNC 27, GAP and WPA 2, ROAR 1, TUF 1 |
unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and 51 proportional seats chosen from party lists, all to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 27 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NZLP 52, NP 27, NZFP 13, ACT New Zealand 9, Green Party 9, UF 8, other 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
63.31 years male: 60.52 years female: 66.24 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.32 years
male: 75.34 years female: 81.44 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98.1% male: 98.6% female: 97.5% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1980 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Australia |
Map references | South America | Oceania |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,929 GRT/4,507 DWT ships by type: cargo 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 69,685 GRT/106,627 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 2, container 1, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Guyana Defense Force (GDF; includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Corps), Guyana People's Militia (GPM), Guyana National Service (GNS), Guyana Police Force | New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $7 million (FY94) | $605.7 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (FY94) | 1% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
204,938 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,021,770 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
154,259 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 859,505 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 26,803 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun:
Guyanese (singular and plural) adjective: Guyanese |
noun: New Zealander(s)
adjective: New Zealand |
Natural hazards | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons | earthquakes are common, though usually not severe; volcanic activity |
Natural resources | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish | natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone |
Net migration rate | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,213 km; liquid petroleum gas 79 km; oil 160 km; refined products 304 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Guyana or AFG (includes Guyana Labor Party or GLP and Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARINE]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [leader NA]; Guyana Labor Party or GLP [leader NA]; People's National Congress or PNC [Hugh Desmond HOYTE]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Janet JAGEN]; Rise, Organize and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPARNINE] | ACT New Zealand [Richard PREBBLE]; Alliance (a coalition of the New Labor Party, Democratic Party, New Zealand Liberal Party, and Mana Motuhake) [James (Jim) ANDERTON]; Green Party [Jeanette FITZSIMONS and Rod DONALD]; National Party or NP [Don BRASH]; New Zealand First Party or NZFP [Winston PETERS]; New Zealand Labor Party or NZLP [Helen CLARK]; United Future or UF [Peter DUNNE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Civil Liberties Action Committee or CLAC; Guyana Council of Indian Organizations or GCIO; Rise, Organize and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; Trades Union Congress or TUC
note: the GCIO and the CLAC are small and active but not well organized |
NA |
Population | 697,181
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 2001 est.) |
3,951,307 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.07% (2001 est.) | 1.09% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika | Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Tauranga, Wellington |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 420,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
187 km (all dedicated to ore transport) standard gauge: 139 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 48 km 0.914-m gauge |
total: 3,898 km
narrow gauge: 3,898 km 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified) (2002) |
Religions | Christian 50%, Hindu 33%, Muslim 9%, other 8% | Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%, Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none 33% (1986) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
fair system for long-distance calling domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines international: tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: excellent domestic and international systems
domestic: NA international: submarine cables to Australia and Fiji; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 70,000 (2000) | 1.92 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 6,100 (2000) | 2.2 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) | 41 (plus 52 medium-power repeaters and over 650 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south | predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains |
Total fertility rate | 2.1 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12% (1992 est.) | 5.3% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 5,900 km (total length of navigable waterways)
note: Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km, respectively |
1,609 km
note: of little importance in satisfying total transportation requirements |