Jamaica (2001) | Belgium (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland | 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Dutch: provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (French: regions; Dutch: gewesten); Antwerpen, Brabant Wallon, Brussels* (Bruxelles), Flanders*, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams-Brabant, Wallonia*, West-Vlaanderen
note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.7% (male 405,189; female 386,555) 15-64 years: 63.52% (male 845,226; female 847,944) 65 years and over: 6.78% (male 80,667; female 100,055) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.9% (male 892,995/female 855,177)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 3,435,282/female 3,373,917) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 745,178/female 1,061,839) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk | sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk |
Airports | 35 (2000 est.) | 43 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 25
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
24 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2000 est.) |
total: 18
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 16 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
10,990 sq km land: 10,830 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 30,528 sq km
land: 30,278 sq km water: 250 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | about the size of Maryland |
Background | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. | Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830 and was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. It has prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy. |
Birth rate | 18.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.48 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.23 billion expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $173.7 billion
expenditures: $174.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.56 billion (2004 est.) |
Capital | Kingston | Brussels |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior | temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy |
Coastline | 1,022 km | 66.5 km |
Constitution | 6 August 1962 | 7 February 1831; amended many times; revised 14 July 1993 to create a federal state |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Jamaica |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie local short form: Belgique/Belgie |
Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) | - |
Death rate | 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.7 billion (2000 est.) | $28.3 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Stanley Louis MCLELLAND embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Tom C. KOROLOGOS
embassy: Regentlaan 27 Boulevard du Regent, B-1000 Brussels mailing address: PSC 82, Box 002, APO AE 09710 telephone: [32] (2) 508-2111 FAX: [32] (2) 511-2725 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard Leighton BERNAL chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Franciskus VAN DAELE
chancery: 3330 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 333-3079 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.072 billion (2002) |
Economic aid - recipient | $102.7 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | Key sectors in this island economy are bauxite (alumina and bauxite account for more than half of exports) and tourism. Since assuming office in 1992, Prime Minister PATTERSON has eliminated most price controls, streamlined tax schedules, and privatized government enterprises. Continued tight monetary and fiscal policies have helped slow inflation - although inflationary pressures are mounting - and stabilize the exchange rate, but have resulted in the slowdown of economic growth (moving from 1.5% in 1992 to 0.5% in 1995). In 1996, GDP showed negative growth (-1.4%) and remained negative through 1999. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; the weak financial condition of business in general resulting in receiverships or closures and downsizings of companies; the shift in investment portfolios to non-productive, short-term high yield instruments; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt for government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions in 1999-2000 led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment in the productive sectors, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, stabilizing the labor environment, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. | This modern private enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Roughly three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is nearly 100% of GDP. On the positive side, the government has succeeded in balancing its budget, and income distribution is relatively equal. Belgium began circulating the euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-03 dropped sharply because of the global economic slowdown, with moderate recovery in 2004. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.073 billion kWh (1999) | 78.82 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 9.1 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 16.7 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 6.53 billion kWh (1999) | 76.58 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
92.28% hydro: 1.36% nuclear: 0% other: 6.36% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
lowest point: North Sea 0 m
highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry, extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries; uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now resolved) have slowed progress in tackling environmental challenges |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% | Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11% |
Exchange rates | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 45.557 (January 2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997), 37.120 (1996) | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) 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; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August 1993); Heir Apparent Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and then approved by parliament note: government coalition - VLD, MR, PS, SP.A-Spirit |
Exports | $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 450,000 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.8%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) | Germany 19.9%, France 17.2%, Netherlands 11.8%, UK 8.6%, US 6.5%, Italy 5.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) | three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the design was based on the flag of France |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.7 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
7.4% industry: 35.2% services: 57.4% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 25.7% services: 73% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $30,600 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.2% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 77 30 W | 50 50 N, 4 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal | crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the European Union and NATO |
Heliports | - | 1 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
19,000 km paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997) |
total: 149,028 km
paved: 116,540 km (including 1,729 km of expressways) unpaved: 32,488 km (2002) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 28.9% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 23% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern | growing producer of synthetic drugs; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation, the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics, automobiles, alcohol, and tobacco |
Imports | $3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 1.042 million bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products |
Imports - partners | US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) | Germany 18.4%, Netherlands 17%, France 12.5%, UK 6.8%, Ireland 6.3%, US 5.5% (2004) |
Independence | 6 August 1962 (from UK) | 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2004 est.) |
Industries | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products | engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum |
Infant mortality rate | 14.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 4.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.8% (2000 est.) | 1.9% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 21 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 350 sq km (1993 est.) | 40 sq km (includes Luxembourg) (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal | Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) or Cour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by the Government; candidacies have to be submitted by the High Justice Council) |
Labor force | 1.13 million (1998) | 4.75 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) | agriculture 1.3%, industry 24.5%, services 74.2% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,385 km
border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km |
Land use | arable land:
14% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 17% other: 39% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 23.28%
permanent crops: 0.4% other: 76.32% note: includes Luxembourg (2001) |
Languages | English, Creole | Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French) |
Legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | 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 eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 18 December 1997 (next to be held by March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PNP 50, JLP 10 |
bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate and Chamber of Deputies - last held 18 May 2003 (next to be held no later than May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - SP.A-Spirit 15.5%, VLD 15.4%, CD & V 12.7%, PS 12.8%, MR 12.1%, VB 9.4%, CDH 5.6%; seats by party - SP.A-Spirit 7, VLD 7, CD & V 6, PS 6, MR 5, VB 5, CDH 2, other 2 (note - there are also 31 indirectly elected senators); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - VLD 15.4%, SP.A-Spirit 14.9%, CD & V 13.3%, PS 13.0%, VB 11.6%, MR 11.4%, CDH 5.5%, Ecolo 3.1%; seats by party - VLD 25, SP.A-Spirit 23, CD & V 21, PS 25, VB 18, MR 24, CDH 8 Ecolo 4, other 2 note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.42 years male: 73.45 years female: 77.49 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.62 years
male: 75.44 years female: 81.94 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba | Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit continental shelf: median line with neighbors |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,930 GRT/3,065 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 53 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,146,301 GRT/1,588,184 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 15, cargo 2, chemical tanker 2, container 8, liquefied gas 17, petroleum tanker 9 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 4, France 4, Greece 4) registered in other countries: 101 (2005) |
Military branches | Jamaica Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force | Land, Naval, and Air Components (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) | $3.999 billion (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.3% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
736,627 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
517,077 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
27,729 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) | 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I |
Nationality | noun:
Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican |
noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (especially July to November) | flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes |
Natural resources | bauxite, gypsum, limestone | construction materials, silica sand, carbonates |
Net migration rate | -7.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 10 km | gas 1,485 km; oil 158 km; refined products 535 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] | Flemish parties: Christian Democrats and Flemish or CD & V [Jo VANDEURZEN]; Flemish Liberal Democrats or VLD [Bart SOMERS]; GROEN! (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens) [Vera DUA]; New Flemish Alliance or NVA [Bart DE WEVER]; Socialist Party.Alternative or SP.A [Caroline GENNEZ]; Spirit [Geert LAMBERT] (new party now associated with SP.A); Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) or VB [Frank VANHECKE]
Francophone parties: Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Evelyne HUYTEBROECK, Claude BROUIR]; Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; Reformist Movement or MR [Didier REYNDERS]; Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; other minor parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) | Christian, Socialist, and Liberal Trade Unions; Federation of Belgian Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia; various peace groups such as Pax Christi and groups representing immigrants |
Population | 2,665,636 (July 2001 est.) | 10,364,388 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 34.2% (1992 est.) | 4% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.51% (2001 est.) | 0.15% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) | Antwerp, Brussels, Gent, Liege, Oostende, Zeebrugge |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | FM 79, AM 7, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 1.215 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
370 km standard gauge: 370 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km belong to the Jamaica Railway Corporation in common carrier service, but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite |
total: 3,521 km
standard gauge: 3,521 km 1.435-m gauge (2,927 km electrified) (2004) |
Religions | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% | Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
general assessment: highly developed, technologically advanced, and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities
domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; extensive cable network; limited microwave radio relay network international: country code - 32; 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Eutelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 353,000 (1996) | 5,120,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 54,640 (1996) | 8,135,500 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1997) | 25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 2.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (2000 est.) | 12% (first half, 2004) |
Waterways | none | 2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2003) |