Ireland (2002) | Guinea-Bissau (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
note: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are part of Ulster Province |
9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.3% (male 425,366; female 403,268)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 1,307,469; female 1,305,038) 65 years and over: 11.4% (male 191,927; female 250,091) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.4% (male 297,623/female 298,942)
15-64 years: 55.6% (male 384,559/female 417,811) 65 years and over: 3% (male 18,048/female 25,046) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 41 (2001) | 28 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 16
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 20
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 17 (2002) |
total: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2006) |
Area | total: 70,280 sq km
land: 68,890 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | Celtic tribes settled on the island in the 4th century B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the United Kingdom. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland, known as the Good Friday Agreement and approved in 1998, is currently being implemented. | Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable political and military upheaval. In 1980, a military coup established authoritarian dictator Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA as president. Despite setting a path to a market economy and multiparty system, VIEIRA's regime was characterized by the suppression of political opposition and the purging of political rivals. Several coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him. In 1994 VIEIRA was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military mutiny and resulting civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in May 1999. In February 2000, a transitional government turned over power to opposition leader Kumba YALA, after he was elected president in transparent polling. In September 2003, after only three years in office, YALA was ousted by the military in a bloodless coup, and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In August 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president in the second round of presidential polling. Since formally assuming office in October 2005, Vieira has pledged to pursue economic development and national reconciliation. |
Birth rate | 14.62 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $34 billion
expenditures: $27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | Dublin | name: Bissau
geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 1,448 km | 350 km |
Constitution | 29 December 1937; adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, NA 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Ireland |
conventional long form: Republic of Guinea-Bissau
conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau local short form: Guine-Bissau former: Portuguese Guinea |
Currency | euro (EUR); Irish pound (IEP)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
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Death rate | 8.01 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $11 billion (1998) (1998) | $941.5 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard J. EGAN
embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [353] (1) 668-7122/668-8777 FAX: [353] (1) 668-9946 |
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; the US Ambassador to Senegal is accredited to Guinea-Bissau |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Noel FAHEY
chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939 FAX: [1] (202) 232-5993 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC; Guinea-Bissau's representative in Washington is Henrique Adriano DA SILVA, P.O. Box 33813, Washington, DC 20033, telephone: (301)947-3958 |
Disputes - international | disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and the UK over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $283 million (2001) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $115.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy with growth averaging a robust 8% in 1995-2002. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts for 45% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and employs 28% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's robust growth, the economy is also benefiting from a rise in consumer spending, construction, and business investment. Over the past decade, the Irish government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to curb inflation, reduce government spending, increase labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in launching the euro currency system in January 1999 along with 10 other EU nations. The economy felt the impact of the global economic slowdown in 2001-02, particularly in the high-tech export sector; the growth rate was cut by half. | One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, offshore oil prospecting has begun and could lead to much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. In December 2003, the World Bank, IMF, and UNDP were forced to step in to provide emergency budgetary support in the amount of $107 million for 2004, representing over 80% of the total national budget. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in continued low growth in 2002-05. |
Electricity - consumption | 20.823 billion kWh (2000) | 52.08 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 71 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 169 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 22.285 billion kWh (2000) | 56 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 95%
hydro: 4% nuclear: 0% other: 1% (2000) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Carrauntoohil 1,041 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Endangered Species, Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Celtic, English | African 99% (includes Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Irish pounds per US dollar - 0.7014 (1998), 0.6588 (1997) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)
note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Bertie AHERN (since 26 June 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 31 October 1997 (next to be held NA November 2004); prime minister nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president election results: Mary MCALEESE elected president; percent of vote - Mary MCALEESE 44.8%, Mary BANOTTI 29.6% note: government coalition - Fianna Fail and the Progressive Democrats |
chief of state: President Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA (since 1 October 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Aristides GOMES (since 2 November 2005) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held 24 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Joao Bernardo VIEIRA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Joao Bernardo VIEIRA 52.4%, Malan Bacai SANHA 47.6% |
Exports | $85.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | EU 62.8% (UK 19.8%, Germany 11.3%, France 7.7%, Netherlands 5.6%, Belgium 4.8%), US 17.1% (2000) | India 72%, Nigeria 17.1%, Ecuador 4% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $111.3 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 36% services: 60% (2001) |
agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,500 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.9% (2002 est.) | 2.3% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 8 00 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on major air and sea routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 97 km of Dublin | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | total: 92,500 km
paved: 87,043 km (including 115 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,457 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 27% (1997) |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe | - |
Imports | $48.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | data processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals; petroleum and petroleum products, textiles, clothing | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | EU 61.4% (UK 33.4%, Germany 5.9%, France 4.5%, Netherlands 3.5%), US 16.2%, Japan 4% (2000) | Italy 25.3%, Senegal 18.6%, Portugal 15.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.3% (2005) |
Independence | 6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (2002 est.) | 4.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals, machinery, transportation equipment, glass and crystal; software | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | 5.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 105.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 115.53 deaths/1,000 live births female: 94.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.6% (2002 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 22 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 250 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet) | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases) |
Labor force | 1.8 million (2001) | 480,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 64%, industry 28%, agriculture 8% (2000 est.) | agriculture: 82%
industry and services: 18% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 360 km
border countries: UK 360 km |
total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 19.49%
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 80.47% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 8.31%
permanent crops: 6.92% other: 84.77% (2005) |
Languages | English is the language generally used, Irish (Gaelic) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats - 49 elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 and 17 July 2002 (next to be held NA July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 17 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 30, Fine Gael 15, Labor Party 5, Progressive Democrats 4, independents and others 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - Fianna Fail 41.5%, Fine Gael 22.5%, Labor Party 10.8%, Sinn Fein 6.5%, Progressive Democrats 4.0%, Green Party 3.8%, others 10.9%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 81, Fine Gael 31, Labor Party 21, Progressive Democrats 8, Green Party 6, Sinn Fein 5, others 14 |
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years)
elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.17 years
male: 74.41 years female: 80.12 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 46.87 years
male: 45.05 years female: 48.75 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% (1981 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 110,741 GRT/127,342 DWT
ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 20, container 1, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 2 (2002 est.) |
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Military branches | Army (including Naval Service and Air Corps), National Police (Garda Siochana) | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $700 million (FY00/01) | $9.46 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY00/01) | 3.1% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,013,739 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 816,744 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 17 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 32,287 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Irishman(men), Irishwoman(women), Irish (collective plural)
adjective: Irish |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | NA | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | zinc, lead, natural gas, barite, copper, gypsum, limestone, dolomite, peat, silver | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | 4.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 7,592 km (transmission 1,158 km; distribution 6,434 km) (2000) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Enda KENNY]; Green Party [Trevor SARGENT]; Labor Party [Pat RABBITTE]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Tom FRENCH] | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Democratic Social Front or FDS; Electoral Union or UE; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Alberto NAMBEIA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP (coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB); United Popular Alliance or APU; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,883,159 (July 2002 est.) | 1,442,029 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.07% (2002 est.) | 2.07% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Arklow, Cork, Drogheda, Dublin, Foynes, Galway, Limerick, New Ross, Waterford | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | 2.55 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 3,314 km
broad gauge: 1,949 km 1.600-m gauge (38 km electrified; 485 km double-tracked) narrow gauge: 1,365 km 0.914-m gauge (operated by the Irish Peat Board to transport peat to power stations and briqueting plants) (2001) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 91.6%, Church of Ireland 2.5%, other 5.9% (1998) | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: small system
domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.6 million (2002) | 10,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3 million (2002) | 67,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001) | NA (2005) |
Terrain | mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.9 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.86 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.7% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 700 km (limited facilities for commercial traffic) (1998) | four largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2006) |