Hong Kong (2005) | Burkina Faso (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | none (special administrative region of China) | 45 provinces; Bale, Bam, Banwa, Bazega, Bougouriba, Boulgou, Boulkiemde, Comoe, Ganzourgou, Gnagna, Gourma, Houet, Ioba, Kadiogo, Kenedougou, Komondjari, Kompienga, Kossi, Koulpelogo, Kouritenga, Kourweogo, Leraba, Loroum, Mouhoun, Nahouri, Namentenga, Nayala, Noumbiel, Oubritenga, Oudalan, Passore, Poni, Sanguie, Sanmatenga, Seno, Sissili, Soum, Sourou, Tapoa, Tuy, Yagha, Yatenga, Ziro, Zondoma, Zoundweogo |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 13.8% (male 498,771/female 454,252)
15-64 years: 73.5% (male 2,479,656/female 2,591,170) 65 years and over: 12.7% (male 404,308/female 470,529) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 46.7% (male 3,356,737/female 3,327,058)
15-64 years: 50.9% (male 3,635,152/female 3,650,303) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 141,554/female 215,399) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fresh vegetables, poultry, fish, pork | cotton, peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, sorghum, millet, corn, rice; livestock |
Airports | 4 (2004 est.) | 33 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 17 (2007) |
Area | total: 1,092 sq km
land: 1,042 sq km water: 50 sq km |
total: 274,200 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km |
Area - comparative | six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Colorado |
Background | Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. | Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and has won every election since then. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries. |
Birth rate | 7.23 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 45.28 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $26.6 billion
expenditures: $31.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.9 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $1.311 billion
expenditures: $1.764 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | - | name: Ouagadougou
geographic coordinates: 12 22 N, 1 31 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall | tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 733 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | Basic Law, approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress, is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution" | 2 June 1991 approved by referendum, 11 June 1991 formally adopted; last amended January 2002 |
Country name | conventional long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu local short form: Xianggang abbreviation: HK |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Burkina Faso local long form: none local short form: Burkina Faso former: Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta |
Death rate | 5.98 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 15.31 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $66.94 billion (2004 est.) | $1.33 billion (2007) |
Dependency status | special administrative region of China | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Consul General James B. CUNNINGHAM
consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong mailing address: PSC 461, Box 1, FPO AP 96521-0006 telephone: [852] 2523-9011 FAX: [852] 2524-0860 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jeanine E. JACKSON
embassy: 602 Avenue Raoul Follereau, Koulouba, Secteur 4 mailing address: 01 B. P. 35, Ouagadougou 01; pouch mail - US Department of State, 2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC 20521-2440 telephone: [226] 50-30-67-23 FAX: [226] 50-30-38-90, 50-31-23-68 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (special administrative region of China) | chief of mission: Ambassador Paramanga Ernest YONLI (since 14 January 2008)
chancery: 2340 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-5577 FAX: [1] (202) 667-1882 |
Disputes - international | none | two villages remain in dispute along the border with Benin; Benin accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; in recent years citizens and rogue security forces rob and harass local populations on both sides of the poorly-defined Burkina Faso-Niger border; despite the presence of over 9,000 UN forces (UNOCI) in Cote d'Ivoire since 2004, ethnic conflict continues to spread into neighboring states who can no longer send their migrant workers to work in Ivorian cocoa plantations |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $659.6 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Hong Kong has a free market, entrepot economy, highly dependent on international trade. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Gross imports and exports (i.e., including reexports to and from third countries) each exceed GDP in dollar value. Even before Hong Kong reverted to Chinese administration on 1 July 1997, it had extensive trade and investment ties with China. Hong Kong has been further integrating its economy with China because China's growing openness to the world economy has made manufacturing in China much more cost effective. Hong Kong's reexport business to and from China is a major driver of growth. Per capita GDP is comparable to that of the four big economies of Western Europe. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from 1989 to 1997, but Hong Kong suffered two recessions in the past six years because of the Asian financial crisis in 1998 and the global downturn in 2001 and 2002. Although the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak also battered Hong Kong's economy, a boom in tourism from the mainland because of China's easing of travel restrictions, a return of consumer confidence, and a solid rise in exports resulted in the resumption of strong growth in late 2003 and in 2004. | One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has few natural resources and a weak industrial base. About 90% of the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture, which is vulnerable to periodic drought. Cotton is the main cash crop and the government has joined with three other cotton producing countries in the region - Mali, Niger, and Chad - to lobby in the World Trade Organization for fewer subsidies to producers in other competing countries. Since 1998, Burkina Faso has embarked upon a gradual but successful privatization of state-owned enterprises. Having revised its investment code in 2004, Burkina Faso hopes to attract foreign investors. Thanks to this new code and other legislation favoring the mining sector, the country has seen an upswing in gold exploration and production. While the bitter internal crisis in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire is beginning to be resolved, it is still having a negative effect on Burkina Faso's trade and employment. In 2007 higher costs for energy and imported foodstuffs, as well as low cotton prices, dampened a GDP growth rate that had averaged 6% in the last 10 years. Burkina Faso received a Millennium Challenge Account threshold grant to improve girls' education at the primary school level, and appears likely to receive a grant in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture, and land reform. |
Electricity - consumption | 38.45 billion kWh (2003) | 480.1 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 3 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 10.4 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 35.51 billion kWh (2003) | 516.2 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m |
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m |
Environment - current issues | air and water pollution from rapid urbanization | recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Marine Dumping (associate member) | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Chinese 95%, other 5% | Mossi over 40%, other approximately 60% (includes Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, and Fulani) |
Exchange rates | Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003), 7.7989 (2002), 7.7988 (2001), 7.7912 (2000) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Donald TSANG (since 24 June 2005) cabinet: Executive Council consists of seven non-official members and 14 official members elections: previous chief executive TUNG Chee-hwa was elected to second five-year term in March 2002 by 800-member election committee dominated by pro-Beijing forces, resignation accepted 12 March 2005; Donald TSANG acted as chief executive between 12 March 2005 and 25 May 2005; Henry TANG acted as chief executive between 25 May 2005 and 24 June 2005; last election 16 June 2005 to fill final two years of TUNG's term (next to be held in June 2007) |
chief of state: President Blaise COMPAORE (since 15 October 1987)
head of government: Prime Minister Tertius ZONGO (since 4 June 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 13 November 2005 (next to be held in 2010); in April 2000, the constitution was amended reducing the presidential term from seven to five years, enforceable as of 2005; prime minister appointed by the president with the consent of the legislature election results: Blaise COMPAORE reelected president; percent of popular vote - Blaise COMPAORE 80.3%, Benewende Stanislas SANKARA 4.9% |
Exports | NA | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material | cotton, livestock, gold |
Exports - partners | China 44%, US 17%, Japan 5.3% (2004) | China 41.9%, Singapore 14.4%, Ghana 5.9%, Thailand 4.9%, Niger 4.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a yellow five-pointed star in the center
note: uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 11.3% services: 88.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 29.4%
industry: 19% services: 51.7% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $34,200 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 7.9% (2004 est.) | 4.2% (2007) |
Geographic coordinates | 22 15 N, 114 10 E | 13 00 N, 2 00 W |
Geography - note | more than 200 islands | landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas |
Heliports | 2 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 1,831 km
paved: 1,831 km unpaved: 0 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.2% (2004) |
Illicit drugs | makes strenuous law enforcement efforts, but faces difficult challenges in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine to regional and world markets; modern banking system provides conduit for money laundering; rising indigenous use of synthetic drugs, especially among young people | - |
Imports | NA | 8,158 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported) | capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum |
Imports - partners | China 43.5%, Japan 12.1%, Taiwan 7.3%, US 5.3%, Singapore 5.3%, South Korea 4.8% (2004) | Cote d'Ivoire 25.9%, France 22.8%, Togo 7.2% (2006) |
Independence | none (special administrative region of China) | 5 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1% (2004 est.) | 5.2% (2007 est.) |
Industries | textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks | cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold |
Infant mortality rate | total: 2.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 89.79 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 97.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 81.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.3% (2004 est.) | 0.7% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | APEC, AsDB, BIS, ICC, ICFTU, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (1998 est.) | 250 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | Supreme Court; Appeals Court |
Labor force | 3.54 million (October 2004 est.) | 5 million
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | manufacturing 7.5%, construction 2.9%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.7%, financing, insurance, and real estate 19.2%, transport and communications 7.9%, community and social services 18.5%
note: above data exclude public sector (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 30 km
regional border: China 30 km |
total: 3,193 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 549 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.05%
permanent crops: 1.01% other: 93.94% (2001) |
arable land: 17.66%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 82.12% (2005) |
Languages | Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official | French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; in 2004 30 seats indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 September 2004 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - pro-democracy group 62%; seats by party - (pro-Beijing 34) DAB 12, Liberal Party 10, independents 11, FTU 1; (pro-democracy 25) independents 11, Democratic Party 9, CTU 2, ADPL 1, Frontier Party 1, NWSC 1; other 1 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (111 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly election last held 6 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CDP 73, ADF-RDA 14, UPR 5, UNIR-MS 4, CFD-B 3, UPS 2, PDP-PS 2, RDB 2, PDS 2, PAREN 1, PAI 1, RPC 1, UDPS 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 81.5 years
male: 78.81 years female: 84.41 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 49.21 years
male: 47.68 years female: 50.8 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 93.5% male: 96.9% female: 89.6% (2002) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 21.8% male: 29.4% female: 15.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China | Western Africa, north of Ghana |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 837 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 20,478,042 GRT/34,554,455 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 446, cargo 119, chemical tanker 44, combination ore/oil 2, container 105, liquefied gas 20, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 75, roll on/roll off 5, vehicle carrier 8 foreign-owned: 453 (Australia 1, Bahamas 1, Belgium 3, Canada 9, China 246, Denmark 3, France 5, Germany 13, Greece 19, India 1, Indonesia 1, Israel 1, Japan 51, Norway 16, Philippines 13, Singapore 17, South Korea 8, Taiwan 5, Thailand 4, UAE 1, United Kingdom 32, United States 3) registered in other countries: 373 (2005) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of China | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) includes elements of the PLA Ground Forces, PLA Navy, and PLA Air Force; these forces are under the direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and under administrative control of the adjacent Guangzhou Military Region | Army, Air Force of Burkina Faso (Force Aerienne de Burkina Faso, FABF), National Gendarmerie (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | Hong Kong garrison is funded by China; figures are NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.2% (2006) |
National holiday | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day | Republic Day, 11 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun: Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong |
noun: Burkinabe (singular and plural)
adjective: Burkinabe |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar | manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates, pumice, salt |
Net migration rate | 5.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick FUNG Kin-kee, chairman]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong or DAB [MA Lik, chairman]; Democratic Party [LEE Wing-tat, chairman]; Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing, chairwoman]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun, chairman]
note: political blocs include: pro-democracy - Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood, Democratic Party, Frontier Party; pro-Beijing - Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, Liberal Party |
African Democratic Rally-Alliance for Democracy and Federation or ADF-RDA [Gilbert OUEDRAOGO]; Citizen's Popular Rally or RPC [Antoine QUARE]; Coalition of Democratic Forces of Burkina or CFD-B [Amadou Diemdioda DICKO]; Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP [Roch Marc-Christian KABORE]; Movement for Tolerance and Progress or MTP [Nayabtigungou Congo KABORE]; Party for African Independence or PAI [Philippe OUEDRAOGO]; Party for Democracy and Progress/Socialist Party or PDP/PS [Ali LANKOANDE]; Party for Democracy and Socialism or PDS [Felix SOUBEIGA]; Party for National Rebirth or PAREN [Oumar DJIGUIMDE]; Rally for the Development of Burkina or RDB [Antoine KARGOUGOU]; Rally of Ecologists of Burkina Faso or RDEB [Ram OUEDRAGO]; Republican Party for Integration and Solidarity or PARIS [Cyril GOUNGOUNGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Fidele HIEN]; Union for Rebirth - Sankarist Movement or UNIR-MS [Benewende STANISLAS]; Union for the Republic or UPR [Toussaint Abel COULIBALY]; Union of Sankarist Parties or UPS [Ernest Nongma OUEDRAOGO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade Unions or CTU (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Federation of Trade Unions or FTU (pro-China) [CHENG Yiu-tong, executive councilor]; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China [Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG Man-kwong, president]; Neighborhood and Workers' Service Center or NWSC (pro-democracy); The Alliance [Bernard CHAN, exco member] | Burkinabe General Confederation of Labor or CGTB [Tole SAGNON]; Burkinabe Movement for Human Rights or MBDHP [Chrysigone ZOUGMORE]; Group of 14 February [Benewende STANISLAS]; National Confederation of Burkinabe Workers or CNTB [Laurent OUEDRAOGO]; National Organization of Free Unions or ONSL [Paul KABORE]; watchdog/political action groups throughout the country in both organizations and communities |
Population | 6,898,686 (July 2005 est.) | 14,326,203
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 46.4% (2004) |
Population growth rate | 0.65% (2005 est.) | 2.997% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Hong Kong | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 2, FM 26, shortwave 3 |
Railways | - | total: 622 km
narrow gauge: 622 km 1.000-m gauge note:: another 660 km of this railway extends into Cote D'Ivoire (2006) |
Religions | eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10% | Muslim 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.009 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.996 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.657 male(s)/female total population: 0.992 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | direct election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election limited to about 200,000 members of functional constituencies and an 800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies | universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services
domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network international: country code - 852; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; access to 5 international submarine cables providing connections to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe |
general assessment: services only fair; in 2006 the government sold a 51 percent stake in the national telephone company and ultimately plans to retain only a 23 percent stake in the company; fixed-line connections stand at less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage, fostered by multiple providers, is increasing rapidly from a low base
domestic: microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone communication stations international: country code - 226; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,801,300 (2003) | 94,800 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,241,400 (2003) | 1.017 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (2004) | 3 (1 national, 2 private) |
Terrain | hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north | mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast |
Total fertility rate | 0.91 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 6.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.7% (2004 est.) | 77% |