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Compare Jamaica (2002) - Benin (2008)

Compare Jamaica (2002) z Benin (2008)

 Jamaica (2002)Benin (2008)
 JamaicaBenin
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 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou
Age structure 0-14 years: 29.1% (male 399,249; female 380,864)


15-64 years: 64.1% (male 858,433; female 859,174)


65 years and over: 6.8% (male 81,321; female 100,988) (2002 est.)
0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940)


15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291)


65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock
Airports 35 (2001) 5 (2007)
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 (2002)
total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 22 (2002)
total: 4


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007)
Area total: 10,991 sq km


land: 10,831 sq km


water: 160 sq km
total: 112,620 sq km


land: 110,620 sq km


water: 2,000 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Connecticut slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
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. Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. KEREKOU stepped down at the end of his second term in 2006 and was succeeded by Thomas YAYI Boni, a political outsider and independent. YAYI has begun a high profile fight against corruption and has strongly promoted accelerating Benin's economic growth.
Birth rate 17.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $2.23 billion


expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million
revenues: $936.9 million


expenditures: $1.226 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Kingston name: Porto-Novo (official capital)


geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


note: Cotonou (seat of government)
Climate tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline 1,022 km 121 km
Constitution 6 August 1962 adopted by referendum 2 December 1990
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Jamaica
conventional long form: Republic of Benin


conventional short form: Benin


local long form: Republique du Benin


local short form: Benin


former: Dahomey
Currency Jamaican dollar (JMD) -
Death rate 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $5.2 billion (2001 est.) $1.2 billion (2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB


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 Gayleatha B. BROWN


embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou


mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou


telephone: [229] 21-30-06-50


FAX: [229] 21-30-03-84
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Seymour MULLINGS


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 Cyrille Segbe OGUIN


chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656


FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996
Disputes - international none two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; Benin accused Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin, but border relations remain strained by rival gang clashes; Benin and Togo announced plans in 2006 to construct a joint hydroelectric dam on the Mona River at the southern end of the border
Economic aid - recipient $102.7 million (1995) (1995) $374.7 million (2006)
Economy - overview The economy, which depends heavily on tourism and bauxite, has been stagnant since 1995. After five years of recession, the economy grew 0.8% in 2000 and 1.1% in 2001, but the global economic slowdown, particularly in the United States after the 11 September terrorist attacks, has stunted the economic recovery. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past seven years, but rapid population growth has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. Specific projects to improve the business climate by reforms to the land tenure system, the commercial justice system, and the financial sector were included in Benin's $307 million Millennium Challenge Account grant signed in February 2006. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture though the government annulled the privatization of Benin's state cotton company in November 2007 after the discovery of irregularities in the bidding process. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. An insufficient electrical supply continues to adversely affect Benin's economic growth though the government recently has taken steps to increase domestic power production.
Electricity - consumption 6.27 billion kWh (2000) 587 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2000) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2000) 595 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 6.74 billion kWh (2000) 105 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 89%


hydro: 3%


nuclear: 0%


other: 7% (2000)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 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 inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census)
Exchange rates Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 47.277 (December 2001), 45.996 (2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997) 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: 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; 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
chief of state: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2011)


election results: Thomas YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - Thomas YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%
Exports $1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) 0 bbl/day (2007)
Exports - commodities alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood
Exports - partners US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.9%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006)
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) two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side
GDP purchasing power parity - $9.8 billion (2001 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 7%


industry: 28%


services: 65% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 33.2%


industry: 14.5%


services: 52.3% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2001 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1.1% (2001 est.) 4.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 15 N, 77 30 W 9 30 N, 2 15 E
Geography - note strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands
Highways total: 19,000 km


paved: 13,433 km


unpaved: 5,567 km (1997)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3%


highest 10%: 29% (1996) (1996)
lowest 10%: 3.1%


highest 10%: 29% (2003)
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; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions transshipment point used by Nigerian traffickers for narcotics destined for Western Europe; vulnerable to money laundering due to poorly enforced financial regulations
Imports $3.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) 16,830 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006)
Independence 6 August 1962 (from UK) 1 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate -2% (2000 est.) 4.5% (2007 est.)
Industries tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement
Infant mortality rate 13.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6.9% (2001 est.) 2.5% (2007 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, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 21 (2000) -
Irrigated land 250 sq km (1998 est.) 120 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
Labor force 1.13 million (1998) (1998) 5.38 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) (1998) -
Land boundaries 0 km total: 1,989 km


border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km
Land use arable land: 16.07%


permanent crops: 9.23%


other: 74.7% (1998 est.)
arable land: 23.53%


permanent crops: 2.37%


other: 74.1% (2005)
Languages English, patois English French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)
Legal system based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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 16 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 31 March 2007 (next to be held by March 2011)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FCBE 35, ADD 20, PRD 10, other and independents 18
Life expectancy at birth total population: 75.64 years


male: 73.65 years


female: 77.73 years (2002 est.)
total population: 53.44 years


male: 52.28 years


female: 54.63 years (2007 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: 34.7%


male: 47.9%


female: 23.3% (2002 census)
Location Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Africa
Maritime claims measured from claimed archipelagic baselines


contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 21,954 GRT/25,250 DWT


ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Latvia 2, United States 2 (2002 est.)
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Military branches Jamaica Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force Benin Armed Forces (FAB): Army (l'Arme de Terre), Benin Navy (Forces Navales Beninois, FNB), Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2008)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $30 million (FY95/96 est.) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 1.7% (2006)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 747,043 (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 523,550 (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 27,729 (2002 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) National Day, 1 August (1960)
Nationality noun: Jamaican(s)


adjective: Jamaican
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)


adjective: Beninese
Natural hazards hurricanes (especially July to November) hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March
Natural resources bauxite, gypsum, limestone small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber
Net migration rate -6.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines petroleum products 10 km -
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] Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Benin Renaissance or RB [Rosine SOGLO]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Theophile NATA]; Key Force or FC [Lazare SÈHOUÉTO]; Movement for the People's Alternative or MAP [Olivier CAPO-CHICHI]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Dominique HOUNGNINOU]; Social Democrat Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Union for the Relief or UPR [Issa SALIFOU]; Union for Democracy and National Solidarity or UDS [Sacca LAFIA]


note: approximately 20 additional minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) NA
Population 2,680,029 (July 2002 est.) 8,078,314


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 34% (1992 est.) 37.4% (2007 est.)
Population growth rate 0.56% (2002 est.) 2.674% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) -
Radio broadcast stations AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 1, FM 34, shortwave 1 (2007)
Radios 1.215 million (1997) -
Railways total: 272 km


standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation, were in common carrier service but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite (2000)
total: 758 km


narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
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% Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census)
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 (2002 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female


total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
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: inadequate; fixed-line network is almost saturated with fixed-line teledensity stuck at a meager 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone subscribership is increasing


domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections; four mobile-cellular providers


international: country code - 229; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 353,000 (1996) 77,300 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 54,640 (1996) 1.056 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 7 (1997) 6 (2007)
Terrain mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains
Total fertility rate 2.05 children born/woman (2002 est.) 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 16% (2000 est.) NA%
Waterways none 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)
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