Lebanon (2001) | Aruba (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Ech Chimal, Ej Jnoub, El Bekaa, Jabal Loubnane | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
27.57% (male 509,975; female 490,031) 15-64 years: 65.72% (male 1,136,995; female 1,247,184) 65 years and over: 6.71% (male 110,964; female 132,625) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 19.9% (male 7,308/female 6,960)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 23,736/female 25,068) 65 years and over: 11.9% (male 3,486/female 5,008) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats | aloes; livestock; fish |
Airports | 8 (2000 est.) | 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
10,400 sq km land: 10,230 sq km water: 170 sq km |
total: 193 sq km
land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut | slightly larger than Washington, DC |
Background | Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions and regaining its national sovereignty since 1991 and the end of the devastating 16-year civil war. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese have established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater say in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, the Lebanese have conducted several successful elections, most of the militias have been weakened or disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended central government authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, the radical Shi'a party, retains its weapons. Syria maintains about 25,000 troops in Lebanon based mainly in Beirut, North Lebanon, and the Bekaa Valley. Syria's troop deployment was legitimized by the Arab League during Lebanon's civil war and in the Ta'if Accord. Damascus justifies its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing the continued weakness of the LAF, Beirut's requests, and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from its security zone in southern Lebanon in May of 2000, however, has emboldened some Lebanese Christians and Druze to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. |
Birth rate | 20.16 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$3.31 billion expenditures: $5.55 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $135.8 million
expenditures: $147 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000) |
Capital | Beirut | Oranjestad |
Climate | Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 225 km | 68.5 km |
Constitution | 23 May 1926, amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Taif Accord) of October 1989 | 1 January 1986 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Lebanese Republic conventional short form: Lebanon local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah local short form: Lubnan |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Aruba |
Currency | Lebanese pound (LBP) | - |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $9.6 billion (2000 est.) | $285 million (1996) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador David M. SATTERFIELD embassy: Antelias, Beirut mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Beirut; PSC 815, Box 2, FPO AE 09836-0002 telephone: [961] (4) 543600, 543600 FAX: [961] (4) 544136 |
the US does not have an embassy in Aruba; the Consul General to Netherlands Antilles is accredited to Aruba |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Dr. Farid ABBOUD chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6300 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324 consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Henry Baarh, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Disputes - international | Syrian troops in northern, central, and eastern Lebanon since October 1976; Lebanese government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as a part of Lebanon from which Hizballah conducts cross-border attacks | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $3.5 billion (pledges 1997-2001) | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 |
Economy - overview | The 1975-91 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Peace enabled the central government to restore control in Beirut, begin collecting taxes, and regain access to key port and government facilities. Economic recovery was helped by a financially sound banking system and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers. Family remittances, banking services, manufactured and farm exports, and international aid provided the main sources of foreign exchange. Lebanon's economy has made impressive gains since the launch in 1993 of "Horizon 2000," the government's $20 billion reconstruction program. Real GDP grew 8% in 1994, 7% in 1995, 4% per year in 1996 and 1997 but slowed to 2% in 1998, -1% in 1999, and 1% in 2000. Annual inflation fell during the course of the 1990s from more than 100% to 0%, and foreign exchange reserves jumped from $1.4 billion to more than $6 billion. Burgeoning capital inflows have generated foreign payments surpluses, and the Lebanese pound has remained very stable for the past two years. Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure. Solidere, a $2-billion firm, has managed the reconstruction of Beirut's central business district; the stock market reopened in January 1996; and international banks and insurance companies are returning. The government nonetheless faces serious challenges in the economic arena. It has funded reconstruction by tapping foreign exchange reserves and by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. The newly re-installed HARIRI government's announced policies fail to address the ever-increasing budgetary deficits and national debt burden. The gap between rich and poor has widened in the 1990s, resulting in grassroots dissatisfaction over the skewed distribution of the reconstruction's benefits. | Tourism is the mainstay of the small, open Aruban economy, with offshore banking and oil refining and storage also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and exceptionally low unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. Tourist arrivals have declined in the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. The government now must deal with a budget deficit and a negative trade balance. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.86 billion kWh (1999) | 751.2 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 654 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 7.748 billion kWh (1999) | 807.7 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
91.29% hydro: 8.71% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
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Ethnic groups | Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1% | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% |
Exchange rates | Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (January 2001), 1,507.5 (2000), 1,507.8 (1999), 1,516.1 (1998), 1,539.5 (1997), 1,571.4 (1996) | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Emile LAHUD (since 24 November 1998) head of government: Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI (since 23 October 2000); Deputy Prime Minister Issam FARES (since 23 October 2000) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly; the current Cabinet was formed in 1998 elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term; election last held 15 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by custom, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shi'a Muslim election results: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Fredis REFUNJOL (since 11 May 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Nelson O. ODUBER (since 30 October 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by December 2005) election results: Nelson O. ODUBER elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA |
Exports | $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | foodstuffs and tobacco, textiles, chemicals, precious stones, metal and metal products, electrical equipment and products, jewelry, paper and paper products | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment |
Exports - partners | UAE 9%, Saudi Arabia 8%, Syria 6%, US 6%, Kuwait 6%, France 5%, Belgium 5%, Jordan 4% (1999) | Netherlands 28.5%, Panama 17.5%, Venezuela 14.7%, Netherlands Antilles 11.2%, Colombia 10.7%, US 10.4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width), and red with a green and brown cedar tree centered in the white band | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $18.2 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
12% industry: 27% services: 61% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | -1.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 33 50 N, 35 50 E | 12 30 N, 69 58 W |
Geography - note | Nahr al Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity | a flat, riverless island renowned for its white sand beaches; its tropical climate is moderated by constant trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean; the temperature is almost constant at about 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit) |
Highways | total:
7,300 km paved: 6,350 km unpaved: 950 km (1999 est.) |
total: 800 km
paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | inconsequential producer of hashish; a Lebanese/Syrian eradication campaign started in the early 1990s has practically eliminated the opium and cannabis crops | transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some accompanying money-laundering activity |
Imports | $6.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, textiles, metals, fuels, agricultural foods | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Italy 13%, France 11%, Germany 8%, US 7%, Switzerland 6%, Japan, UK, Syria (1999) | US 55.5%, Netherlands 14.1%, Venezuela 3.3% (2004) |
Independence | 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | banking; food processing; jewelry; cement; textiles; mineral and chemical products; wood and furniture products; oil refining; metal fabricating | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining |
Infant mortality rate | 28.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.89 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 22 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 860 sq km (1993 est.) | 0.01 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed) | Common Court of Justice of Aruba (judges are appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 1.3 million (1999 est.)
note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (1997 est.) |
41,500 (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services NA%, industry NA%, agriculture NA% | most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining |
Land boundaries | total:
454 km border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
18% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 8% other: 64% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 10.53% (including aloe 0.01%)
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.47% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish |
Legal system | mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 August and 3 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Muslim 57% (of which Sunni 25%, Sh'ite 25%, Druze 6%, Alawite less than 1%), Christian 43% (of which Maronite 23%); seats by party - Muslim 64 (of which Sunni 27, Sh'ite 27, Druze 8, Alawite 2), Christian 64 (of which Maronite 34) |
unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 2005 (next to be held by NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - MEP 43%, AVP 32%, MPA 7%, RED 7%, PDR 6%, OLA 4%, PPA 2%; seats by party - MEP 11, AVP 8, MPA 1, RED 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.52 years male: 69.13 years female: 74.03 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 79.14 years
male: 75.8 years female: 82.65 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.4% male: 90.8% female: 82.2% (1997 est.) |
definition:
total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela |
Map references | Middle East | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
71 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 379,705 GRT/592,672 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 42, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 1, container 4, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Netherlands 1, Syria 1 (2000 est.) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force) | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $343 million (FY99/00) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.8% (FY99/00) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
980,412 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
605,332 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Independence Day, 22 November (1943) | Flag Day, 18 March |
Nationality | noun:
Lebanese (singular and plural) adjective: Lebanese |
noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt |
Natural resources | limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land | NEGL; white sandy beaches |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 72 km (none in operation) | - |
Political parties and leaders | political party activity is organized along largely sectarian lines; numerous political groupings exist, consisting of individual political figures and followers motivated by religious, clan, and economic considerations | Aliansa/Aruban Social Movement or MSA [Robert WEVER]; Aruban Liberal Organization or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Movement or MPA [Monica ARENDS-KOCK]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Mike EMAN]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson O. ODUBER]; Real Democracy or PDR [Andin BIKKER]; RED [Rudy LAMPE]; Workers Political Platform or PTT [Gregorio WOLFF] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,627,774 (July 2001 est.) | 71,566 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 28% (1999 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.38% (2001 est.) | 0.47% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Antilyas, Batroun, Beirut, Chekka, El Mina, Ez Zahrani, Jbail, Jounie, Naqoura, Sidon, Tripoli, Tyre | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 2, FM 16, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 2.85 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
399 km (mostly unusable because of damage in civil war) standard gauge: 317 km 1.435-m narrow gauge: 82 km (1999) |
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Religions | Muslim 70% (including Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 30% (including Orthodox Christian, Catholic, Protestant), Jewish NEGL% | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telecommunications system severely damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway domestic: primarily microwave radio relay and cable international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) (erratic operations); coaxial cable to Syria; microwave radio relay to Syria but inoperable beyond Syria to Jordan; 3 submarine coaxial cables |
general assessment: modern fully automatic telecommunications system
domestic: increased competition through privatization; 3 wireless service providers are now licensed international: country code - 297; 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
Telephones - main lines in use | 700,000 (1999) | 37,100 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 580,000 (1999) | 53,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain; Al Biqa' (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation |
Total fertility rate | 2.05 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 18% (1997 est.) | 0.6% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |