Compare Hong Kong (2006) - Jamaica (2008)

Compare Hong Kong (2006) z Jamaica (2008)

	Hong Kong (2006)	Jamaica (2008)

Administrative divisions	none (special administrative region of China)	14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation
Age structure	0-14 years: 13.5% (male 488,607/female 445,593) 15-64 years: 73.7% (male 2,495,679/female 2,620,336) 65 years and over: 12.8% (male 413,031/female 477,186) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 32.5% (male 459,968/female 444,963) 15-64 years: 60.1% (male 822,486/female 848,310) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 91,856/female 112,549) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	fresh vegetables; poultry, pork; fish	sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks
Airports	3 (2006)	34 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	total: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 21 (2007)
Area	total: 1,092 sq km land: 1,042 sq km water: 50 sq km	total: 10,991 sq km land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative	six times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than Connecticut
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.	The island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated and replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and established a plantation economy based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Violent crime, drug trafficking, and poverty pose significant challenges to the government today. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy.
Birth rate	7.29 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	20.44 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $31.31 billion expenditures: $32.3 billion; including capital expenditures of $5.9 billion (2005 est.)	revenues: $3.441 billion expenditures: $3.905 billion (2007 est.)
Capital	-	name: Kingston geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	subtropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall	tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Coastline	733 km	1,022 km
Constitution	Basic Law, approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress, is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"	6 August 1962
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: Jamaica
Death rate	6.29 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	6.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$72.04 billion (2005 est.)	$7.138 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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] 2845-1598	chief of mission: Ambassador Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6 mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5 telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000 FAX: [1] (876) 702-6348
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (special administrative region of China)	chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York
Disputes - international	none	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$35.74 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 2005, but Hong Kong suffered two recessions in the past eight years because of the Asian financial crisis in 1997-1998 and the global downturn in 2001-2002. Although the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003 also battered Hong Kong's economy, a solid rise in exports, a boom in tourism from the mainland because of China's easing of travel restrictions, and a return of consumer confidence resulted in the resumption of strong growth from late 2003 through 2005.	The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Remittances account for nearly 20% of GDP and are equivalent to tourism revenues. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, will suffer an economic setback from damages caused by Hurricane Dean in August 2007. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 135%. Jamaica's onerous debt burden - the fourth highest per capita - is the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Inflation also has declined, standing at about 7% at the end of 2007. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence that is fueled by the drug trade. The GOLDING administration faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth.
Electricity - consumption	39.22 billion kWh (2004)	6.131 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	3.086 billion kWh (2004)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	9.84 billion kWh (2004)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	37.3 billion kWh (2004)	6.985 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
Environment - current issues	air and water pollution from rapid urbanization	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: Marine Dumping (associate member)	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Chinese 95%, other 5%	black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.7773 (2005), 7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003), 7.7989 (2002), 7.7988 (2001)	Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 69.034 (2007), 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (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 14 official members and 15 non-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; TSANG was elected on 16 June 2005 to fill final two years of TUNG's term (next election to be held in March 2007)	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007) 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; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister
Exports	NA bbl/day	1,531 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material	alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels
Exports - partners	China 45%, US 16.1%, Japan 5.3% (2005)	US 30.2%, Canada 15.6%, China 15.2%, UK 10.3%, Netherlands 7%, Norway 4.6% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center	diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 0.1% industry: 9.2% services: 90.6% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 5% industry: 34% services: 61% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	7.3% (2005 est.)	1.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	22 15 N, 114 10 E	18 15 N, 77 30 W
Geography - note	more than 200 islands	strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal
Heliports	3 (2006)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 35.8% (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	transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions
Imports	NA bbl/day	71,420 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported)	food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials
Imports - partners	China 45%, Japan 11%, Taiwan 7.2%, Singapore 5.8%, US 5.1%, South Korea 4.4% (2005)	US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.6%, Venezuela 9.5% (2006)
Independence	none (special administrative region of China)	6 August 1962 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.6% (2005 est.)	2% (2007 est.)
Industries	textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks	tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications
Infant mortality rate	total: 2.95 deaths/1,000 live births male: 3.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 15.73 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	0.9% (2005 est.)	7.1% (2007 est.)
International organization participation	APEC, AsDB, BIS, ICC, ICFTU, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), IOC, ISO (correspondent), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	20 sq km (1998 est.)	250 sq km (2002)
Judicial branch	Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region	Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Labor force	3.61 million (October 2005)	1.255 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	manufacturing 7.5%, construction 2.9%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.9%, financing, insurance, and real estate 19.6%, transport and communications 7.1%, community and social services 18.8% note: above data exclude public sector (2005 est.)	agriculture: 17% industry: 19% services: 64% (2006)
Land boundaries	total: 30 km regional border: China 30 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 5.05% permanent crops: 1.01% other: 93.94% (2001)	arable land: 15.83% permanent crops: 10.01% other: 74.16% (2005)
Languages	Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official	English, English patois
Legal system	based on English common law	based on English common 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; non-voting LEGCO president 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 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 81.59 years male: 78.9 years female: 84.5 years (2006 est.)	total population: 73.12 years male: 71.43 years female: 74.9 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 has ever attended school total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.)
Location	Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China	Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
Map references	Southeast Asia	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 3 nm	measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 924 ships (1000 GRT or over) 30,838,025 GRT/51,957,682 DWT by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 495, cargo 121, chemical tanker 44, container 133, liquefied gas 22, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 7, petroleum tanker 76, roll on/roll off 3, specialized tanker 7, vehicle carrier 8 foreign-owned: 562 (Australia 1, Belgium 3, Canada 28, China 274, Denmark 6, Germany 6, Greece 27, Indonesia 4, Japan 67, South Korea 6, Norway 26, Philippines 16, Portugal 1, Singapore 24, Syria 1, Taiwan 6, UAE 2, UK 43, US 21) registered in other countries: 417 (Bahamas 8, Belize 8, Bermuda 10, Cambodia 15, China 7, Cyprus 1, France 1, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 2, Greece 1, Honduras 2, India 1, Liberia 37, Malaysia 14, Malta 2, Marshall Islands 7, Norway 55, Panama 169, Philippines 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 6, Singapore 50, Taiwan 3, Tuvalu 8, unknown 7) (2006)	total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 161,700 GRT/241,663 DWT by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 2, carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 8, Latvia 2) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007)
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	Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	Hong Kong garrison is funded by China; figures are NA	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	0.6% (2006 est.)
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	Independence Day, 6 August (1962)
Nationality	noun: Chinese/Hong Konger adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong	noun: Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican
Natural hazards	occasional typhoons	hurricanes (especially July to November)
Natural resources	outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar	bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Net migration rate	4.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick FUNG Kin-kee]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong or DAB [MA Lik]; Democratic Party [LEE Wing-tat]; Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun] note: political blocs include: pro-democracy - ADPL, Democratic Party, Frontier Party; pro-Beijing - DAB, Liberal Party	Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Article 45 Concern Group (pro-democracy); 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]	New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
Population	6,940,432 (July 2006 est.)	2,780,132 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	14.8% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	0.59% (2006 est.)	0.777% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2004)	AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
Religions	eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%	Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.034 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.816 male(s)/female total population: 0.978 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	18 years of age; 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage; mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons; the number of fixed-lines in use has been declining international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	3,794,600 (2005)	319,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	8.693 million (2005)	2.804 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	55 low power stations note: two TV networks, each one broadcasting on two channels (2006)	7 (1997)
Terrain	hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north	mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Total fertility rate	0.95 children born/woman (2006 est.)	2.36 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.5% (2005 est.)	10.2% (2007 est.)

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