Guyana (2001) | West Bank (2002) | |
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 | - |
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: 44.4% (male 492,446; female 468,321)
15-64 years: 52% (male 575,282; female 550,793) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 33,163; female 43,662) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugar, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest and fishery potential not exploited | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 3 (2001) |
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: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (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.) |
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Area | total:
214,970 sq km land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
total: 5,860 sq km
land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Idaho | slightly smaller than Delaware |
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 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank had begun in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but have been derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. |
Birth rate | 17.92 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 34.94 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$220.1 million expenditures: $286.4 million, including capital expenditures of $86.6 million (1998) |
revenues: $930 million
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $15 million note: includes Gaza Strip (2000 est.) |
Capital | Georgetown | - |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January) | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters |
Coastline | 459 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 6 October 1980 | - |
Country name | conventional long form:
Co-operative Republic of Guyana conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
Currency | Guyanese dollar (GYD) | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) |
Death rate | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.26 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.1 billion (2000) | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) |
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 |
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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 |
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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) | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation |
Economic aid - recipient | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) | $800 million disbursed (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) |
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. | Economic output in the West Bank is governed by the Paris Economic Protocol of April 1994 between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996 due to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures during the next five years decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of Palestinian violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and severely disrupted trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, internal turmoil and Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas have resulted in the destruction of much capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Another major loss has been the decline in earnings of Palestinian workers in Israel. |
Electricity - consumption | 423.2 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 455 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
98.9% hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment |
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 |
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Ethnic groups | East Indian 49%, black 32%, mixed 12%, Amerindian 6%, white and Chinese 1% | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% |
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 Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.2757 (December 2001), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) |
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% |
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Exports | $570 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone |
Exports - partners | US 22%, Canada 22%, UK 18%, Netherlands Antilles 11%, Jamaica (1999) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) |
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 | - |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.1 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
34.7% industry: 32.5% services: 32.8% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | -35% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 5 00 N, 59 00 W | 32 00 N, 35 15 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) |
Highways | total:
7,970 km paved: 590 km unpaved: 7,380 km (1996) |
total: 4,500 km
paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.) note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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.) | $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food | food, consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | US 29%, Trinidad and Tobago 18%, Netherlands Antilles 16%, UK 7%, Japan (1999) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip |
Independence | 26 May 1966 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.1% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, fishing (shrimp), textiles, gold mining | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers |
Infant mortality rate | 38.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 21.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.9% (2000 est.) | 1% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 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 | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 8 (1999) |
Irrigated land | 1,300 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature; Judicial Court of Appeal; High Court | - |
Labor force | 245,492 (1992) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) |
Land boundaries | total:
2,462 km border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 84% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
arable land: NEGL%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
Legal system | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | - |
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 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population:
63.31 years male: 60.52 years female: 66.24 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.47 years
male: 70.76 years female: 74.29 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98.1% male: 98.6% female: 97.5% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela | Middle East, west of Jordan |
Map references | South America | Middle East |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,929 GRT/4,507 DWT ships by type: cargo 2 (2000 est.) |
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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 | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $7 million (FY94) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (FY94) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
204,938 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
154,259 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) | - |
Nationality | noun:
Guyanese (singular and plural) adjective: Guyanese |
noun: NA
adjective: NA |
Natural hazards | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons | droughts |
Natural resources | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish | arable land |
Net migration rate | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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] | - |
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 |
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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.) |
2,163,667 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.07% (2001 est.) | 3.39% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
Radios | 420,000 (1997) | NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999) |
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 |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 50%, Hindu 33%, Muslim 9%, other 8% | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% |
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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 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: NA
domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
Telephones - main lines in use | 70,000 (2000) | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 6,100 (2000) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) | NA |
Terrain | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east |
Total fertility rate | 2.1 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.77 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12% (1992 est.) | 26% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 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 |
none |