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Compare Jamaica (2004) - Central African Republic (2002)

Compare Jamaica (2004) z Central African Republic (2002)

 Jamaica (2004)Central African Republic (2002)
 JamaicaCentral African Republic
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


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
14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture), 2 economic prefectures* (prefectures economiques, singular - prefecture economique), and 1 commune**; Bamingui-Bangoran, Bangui**, Basse-Kotto, Gribingui*, Haute-Kotto, Haute-Sangha, Haut-Mbomou, Kemo-Gribingui, Lobaye, Mbomou, Nana-Mambere, Ombella-Mpoko, Ouaka, Ouham, Ouham-Pende, Sangha*, Vakaga
Age structure 0-14 years: 28.2% (male 390,966; female 372,961)


15-64 years: 65% (male 883,053; female 880,296)


65 years and over: 6.9% (male 82,788; female 103,066) (2004 est.)
0-14 years: 43% (male 788,417; female 776,721)


15-64 years: 53.2% (male 951,908; female 986,947)


65 years and over: 3.8% (male 60,395; female 78,351) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, vegetables, poultry, goats, milk, crustaceans, and mollusks cotton, coffee, tobacco, manioc (tapioca), yams, millet, corn, bananas; timber
Airports 35 (2003 est.) 51 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.)
total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.)
total: 47


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 10


914 to 1,523 m: 23


under 914 m: 13 (2002)
Area total: 10,991 sq km


land: 10,831 sq km


water: 160 sq km
total: 622,984 sq km


land: 622,984 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Connecticut slightly smaller than Texas
Background Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a drop off in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. The former French colony of Ubangi-Shari became the Central African Republic upon independence in 1960. After three tumultuous decades of misrule - mostly by military governments - a civilian government was installed in 1993.
Birth rate 16.94 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 36.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $2.596 billion


expenditures: $3.111 billion, including capital expenditures of $236 million (2003 est.)
revenues: $NA


expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Capital Kingston Bangui
Climate tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior tropical; hot, dry winters; mild to hot, wet summers
Coastline 1,022 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 6 August 1962 passed by referendum 29 December 1994; adopted 7 January 1995
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Jamaica
conventional long form: Central African Republic


conventional short form: none


local long form: Republique Centrafricaine


local short form: none


former: Ubangi-Shari, Central African Empire


abbreviation: CAR
Currency Jamaican dollar (JMD) Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Death rate 5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 18.62 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $4.962 billion (2003 est.) $881.4 million (2000 est.)
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) 935-6001
chief of mission: Ambassador Mattie R. SHARPLESS


embassy: Avenue David Dacko, Bangui


mailing address: B. P. 924, Bangui


telephone: [236] 61 02 00


FAX: [236] 61 44 94
Diplomatic representation in the US 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 and New York
chief of mission: Ambassador Emmanuel TOUABOY


chancery: 1618 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 483-7800


FAX: [1] (202) 332-9893
Disputes - international none none
Economic aid - recipient $16 million (2003) $172.2 million (1995); note - traditional budget subsidies from France (1995)
Economy - overview The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for 70% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. The global economic slowdown, particularly after the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001, stunted economic growth; the economy rebounded moderately in 2003, with one of the best tourist seasons on record. But the economy faces serious long-term problems: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a sizable merchandise trade deficit; large-scale unemployment; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy. The ratio of debt to GDP is close to 150%. Inflation, previously a bright spot, is expected to remain in the double digits. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. In 2004, the government 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. Subsistence agriculture, together with forestry, remains the backbone of the economy of the Central African Republic (CAR), with more than 70% of the population living in outlying areas. The agricultural sector generates half of GDP. Timber has accounted for about 16% of export earnings and the diamond industry for 54%. Important constraints to economic development include the CAR's landlocked position, a poor transportation system, a largely unskilled work force, and a legacy of misdirected macroeconomic policies. The 50% devaluation of the currencies of 14 Francophone African nations on 12 January 1994 had mixed effects on the CAR's economy. Diamond, timber, coffee, and cotton exports increased, leading an estimated rise of GDP of 7% in 1994 and nearly 5% in 1995. Military rebellions and social unrest in 1996 were accompanied by widespread destruction of property and a drop in GDP of 2%. The IMF approved an Extended Structure Adjustment Facility in 1998 and the World Bank extended further credits in 1999 and approved a $10 million loan in early 2001. As of January 2002, many civil servants were owed as much as 16 months pay during the PATASSE administration, as well as 14 months pay from the KOLINGBA administration.
Electricity - consumption 5.833 billion kWh (2001) 96.72 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 6.272 billion kWh (2001) 104 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 20%


hydro: 80%


nuclear: 0%


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


highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
lowest point: Oubangui River 335 m


highest point: Mont Ngaoui 1,420 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 tap water is not potable; poaching has diminished its reputation as one of the last great wildlife refuges; desertification; deforestation
Environment - international agreements 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
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 94


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2%
Exchange rates Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 57.7409 (2003), 48.4159 (2002), 45.9962 (2001), 42.7011 (2000), 39.0435 (1999) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro
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)


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 Ange-Felix PATASSE (since 22 October 1993)


head of government: Prime Minister Martin ZIGUELE (since 1 April 2001)


cabinet: Council of Ministers


elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 19 September 1999 (next to be held NA September 2005); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: Ange-Felix PATASSE reelected president; percent of vote - Ange-Felix PATASSE 51.63%, Andre KOLINGBA 19.38%, David DACKO 11.15%
Exports NA (2001) $166 million f.o.b. (2000)
Exports - commodities alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco
Exports - partners US 29.6%, UK 11%, Canada 10.8%, France 7.9%, Norway 6.8%, Germany 6.2%, China 6%, Netherlands 4.4% (2003) Benelux 64%, Cote d'Ivoire, Spain, China, Egypt, France (1999)
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) four equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, green, and yellow with a vertical red band in center; there is a yellow five-pointed star on the hoist side of the blue band
GDP purchasing power parity - $10.61 billion (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $4.6 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 6.7%


industry: 37.2%


services: 56.2% (2003 est.)
agriculture: 55%


industry: 20%


services: 25% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,900 (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 1.9% (2003 est.) 1.8% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 15 N, 77 30 W 7 00 N, 21 00 E
Geography - note strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal landlocked; almost the precise center of Africa
Highways total: 18,700 km


paved: 13,109 km


unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.)
total: 23,810 km


paved: 429 km


unpaved: 23,381 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2.7%


highest 10%: 30.3% (2000)
lowest 10%: 1%


highest 10%: 48% (1993) (1993)
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 -
Imports NA (2001) $154 million f.o.b. (2000)
Imports - commodities food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, industrial products
Imports - partners US 39.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 9.7%, Germany 5.6%, Venezuela 4.5%, France 4.5%, Japan 4.2% (2003) France 35%, Cameroon 13%, Benelux, Cote d'Ivoire, Germany, Japan (1999)
Independence 6 August 1962 (from UK) 13 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate -2% (2000 est.) 3.9% (2001)
Industries tourism, bauxite/alumina, textiles, agro processing, wearing apparel, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications diamond mining, sawmills, breweries, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles
Infant mortality rate total: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 13.82 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 11.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
103.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 10.3% (2003 est.) 3.6% (2001 est.)
International organization participation ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC (observer), OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 1 (2002)
Irrigated land 250 sq km (1998 est.) NA sq km
Judicial branch Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court (3 judges appointed by the president, 3 by the president of the National Assembly, and 3 by fellow judges); Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Inferior Courts
Labor force 1.13 million (2003) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 21%, industry 19%, services 60% (1998) -
Land boundaries 0 km total: 5,203 km


border countries: Cameroon 797 km, Chad 1,197 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 467 km, Sudan 1,165 km
Land use arable land: 16.07%


permanent crops: 10.16%


other: 73.77% (2001)
arable land: 3.1%


permanent crops: 0.14%


other: 96.76% (1998 est.)
Languages English, patois English French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages
Legal system based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on French law
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 in 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 (109 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - there were 85 seats in the National Assembly before the 1998 election)


elections: last held 22-23 November and 13 December 1998 (next to be held NA 2003)


election results: percent of vote by party - MLPC 43%, RDC 18%, MDD 9%, FPP 6%, PSD 5%, ADP 4%, PUN 3%, FODEM 2%, PLD 2%, UPR 1%, FC 1%, independents 6%; seats by party - MLPC 47, RDC 20, MDD 8, FPP 7, PSD 6, ADP 5, PUN 3, FODEM 2, PLD 2, UPR 1, FC 1, independents 7
Life expectancy at birth total population: 76.07 years


male: 74.04 years


female: 78.21 years (2004 est.)
total population: 43.58 years


male: 42.08 years


female: 45.13 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school


total population: 87.9%


male: 84.1%


female: 91.6% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 60%


male: 68.5%


female: 52.4% (1995 est.)
Location Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba Central Africa, north of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Africa
Maritime claims 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
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 74,881 GRT/100,682 DWT


by type: bulk 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, short-sea/passenger 1


foreign-owned: Greece 2, Iceland 1, Latvia 1, United States 2 (2004 est.)
-
Military branches Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing Central African Armed Forces (FACA) (including Republican Guard, Ground Forces, Naval Forces, and Air Force), Presidential Security Guard, Gendarmerie, National Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure $31 million (2003) $29 million (FY96)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.4% (2003) 2.2% (FY96)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 764,266 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 845,182 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 533,768 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 442,220 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 27,126 (2004 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) Republic Day, 1 December (1958)
Nationality noun: Jamaican(s)


adjective: Jamaican
noun: Central African(s)


adjective: Central African
Natural hazards hurricanes (especially July to November) hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; floods are common
Natural resources bauxite, gypsum, limestone diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower
Net migration rate -4.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Political parties and leaders Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Hyacinth BENNETT]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] Alliance for Democracy and Progress or ADP [Jacques MBOLIEDAS]; Central African Democratic Assembly or RDC [Andre KOLINGBA]; Civic Forum or FC [Gen. Timothee MALENDOMA]; Democratic Forum for Modernity or FODEM [Charles MASSI]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Nestor KOMBO-NAGUEMON]; Movement for Democracy and Development or MDD [David DACKO]; Movement for the Liberation of the Central African People or MLPC [the party of the president, Ange-Felix PATASSE]; Patriotic Front for Progress or FPP [Abel GOUMBA]; People's Union for the Republic or UPR [Pierre Sammy MAKFOY]; National Unity Party or PUN [Jean-Paul NGOUPANDE]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Enoch LAKOUE]
Political pressure groups and leaders New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) NA
Population 2,713,130 (July 2004 est.) 3,642,739


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 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 19.7% (2002 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 0.66% (2004 est.) 1.8% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) Bangui, Nola, Salo, Nzinga
Radio broadcast stations AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2002)
Radios - 283,000 (1997)
Railways total: 272 km


standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge


note: 207 of these km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation had been in common carrier service until 1992 but are no longer operational; 57 km of the remaining track is privately owned and used by ALCAN to transport bauxite (2003)
0 km
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% indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim 15%


note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the Christian majority
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: 0.8 male(s)/female


total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 21 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network


domestic: NA


international: country code - 1-876; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
general assessment: fair system


domestic: network consists principally of microwave radio relay and low-capacity, low-powered radiotelephone communication


international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 444,400 (2002) 9,500 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1.4 million (2002) 710 (1998)
Television broadcast stations 7 (1997) 1 (2001)
Terrain mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain vast, flat to rolling, monotonous plateau; scattered hills in northeast and southwest
Total fertility rate 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.) 4.77 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 15.9% (2003 est.) 8% (23% for Bangui) (2001 est.)
Waterways - 900 km


note: traditional trade carried on by means of shallow-draft dugouts; Oubangui is the most important river, navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m or less; 282 km navigable to craft drawing as much as 1.8 m
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