Jamaica (2007) | Tokelau (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
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 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 32.5% (male 459,968/female 444,963)
15-64 years: 60.1% (male 822,486/female 848,310) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 91,856/female 112,549) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 34 (2007) | none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2007) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 23
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 21 (2007) |
- |
Area | total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated, replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and a plantation economy - based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee - was established. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. The cycle of violence, drugs, and poverty has served to impoverish large sectors of the populace. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy. | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. |
Birth rate | 20.44 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues: $3.214 billion
expenditures: $3.772 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $430,800
expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.) |
Capital | name: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 1,022 km | 101 km |
Constitution | 6 August 1962 | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
Death rate | 6.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $6.926 billion (2006 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON
embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6 mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5 telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000 FAX: [1] (876) 702-6348 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
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, New York |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $35.74 million (2005) | from New Zealand about $4 million annually |
Economy - overview | The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, was hit hard by Hurricane Ivan in late 2004, but has made a gradual recovery. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a high debt burden - the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Following a strategy begun in 2004, Jamaica has reduced its public debt to 133.3% of GDP. Inflation also had declined to 5.8% at the end of 2006. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. 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. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services, with annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.131 billion kWh (2005) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - production | 6.985 billion kWh (2005) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 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 | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census) | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003), 48.416 (2002) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003), 2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001), 2.2012 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General of New Zealand Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001); New Zealand is represented by Administrator Neil WALTER (since 1 March 2003)
head of government: Pio TUIA (since February 2005); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders) cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors) functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $98,000 f.o.b. (1983) |
Exports - commodities | alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | US 30.2%, Canada 15.6%, China 15.2%, UK 10.3%, Netherlands 7%, Norway 4.6% (2006) | New Zealand (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5.4%
industry: 33.8% services: 60.8% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2006 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 77 30 W | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal | consists of three atolls, each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over three meters above sea level |
Highways | - | total: NA
paved: NA unpaved: NA |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 35.8% (2004) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions | - |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $323,000 c.i.f. (1983) |
Imports - commodities | food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.6%, Venezuela 9.5% (2006) | New Zealand (2000) |
Independence | 6 August 1962 (from UK) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 15.73 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.6% (2006 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (2002) | 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 in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 1.249 million (2006 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 18.1%
industry: 17.3% services: 64.6% (2004) |
- |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 15.83%
permanent crops: 10.01% other: 74.16% (2005) |
arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | English, English patois | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | New Zealand and local statutes |
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 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27 |
unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has 6 seats, Fakaofo has 7 seats, Atafu has 8 seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2002 (next to be held January 2005) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.12 years
male: 71.43 years female: 74.9 years (2007 est.) |
total population: NA
male: -9 years female: -9 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.) |
NA |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba | Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 161,700 GRT/241,663 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 2, carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 8, Latvia 2) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2006 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 August (1962) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (especially July to November) | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | bauxite, gypsum, limestone | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA |
Political parties and leaders | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) | none |
Population | 2,780,132 (July 2007 est.) | 1,405 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 14.8% (2003 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.777% (2007 est.) | -0.01% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: 1 radio station provides service to all islands (2002) |
Religions | Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census) | Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.034 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.816 male(s)/female total population: 0.978 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage; mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons; the number of fixed-lines in use has been declining international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: modern satellite-based communications system;
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 319,000 (2005) | 300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.804 million (2005) | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1997) | - |
Terrain | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 2.36 children born/woman (2007 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | 11.3% (2006 est.) | NA% |