Macau (2008) | Mauritania (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (special administrative region of China) | 12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district*; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott*, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.4% (male 36,413/female 33,981)
15-64 years: 76.6% (male 166,797/female 183,088) 65 years and over: 8% (male 15,541/female 21,169) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
46.14% (male 634,940; female 632,654) 15-64 years: 51.59% (male 698,433; female 718,883) 65 years and over: 2.27% (male 25,840; female 36,562) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | only 2% of land area is cultivated, mainly by vegetable growers; fishing, mostly for crustaceans, is important; some of the catch is exported to Hong Kong | dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep |
Airports | 1 (2007) | 26 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 28.2 sq km
land: 28.2 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
1,030,700 sq km land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | less than one-sixth the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico |
Background | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. In this agreement, China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. | Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as being flawed; Mauritania remains, in reality, a one-party state. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions between its black minority population and the dominant Maur (Arab-Berber) populace. |
Birth rate | 8.57 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 42.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.6 billion
expenditures: $3.4 billion (2006) |
revenues:
$329 million expenditures: $265 million, including capital expenditures of $75 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | - | Nouakchott |
Climate | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers | desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty |
Coastline | 41 km | 754 km |
Constitution | Basic Law, approved on 31 March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution" | 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
conventional long form:
Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah |
Currency | - | ouguiya (MRO) |
Death rate | 4.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 13.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 (2006) | $2.1 billion (1999) |
Dependency status | special administrative region of China | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US has no offices in Macau; US Consulate General in Hong Kong is accredited to Macau | chief of mission:
Ambassador John W. LIMBERT embassy: Rue Abdallaye, Nouakchott mailing address: B. P. 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 25-26-60, 25-26-63 FAX: [222] 25-15-92 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (special administrative region of China) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ahmed Ben Khalifa BEN JIDOU chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $13.7 million (2004) | $300 million (1998) |
Economy - overview | Macau's economy has enjoyed strong growth in recent years on the back of its expanding tourism and gaming sectors. Since opening up its locally-controlled casino industry to foreign competition in 2001, the territory has attracted 10s of billions of dollars in foreign investment that have helped transform it into the world's largest gaming center. In 2006, Macau's gaming revenue surpassed that of the Las Vegas strip, and gaming-related taxes accounted for 75% of total government revenue. The expanding casino sector, and China's decision beginning in 2002 to relax travel restrictions, have reenergized Macau's tourism industry, which saw total visitors grow to 27 million in 2007, up 62% in three years. Macau's strong economic growth has put pressure its labor market prompting businesses to look abroad to meet their staffing needs. The resulting influx of non-resident workers, who totaled one-fifth of the workforce in 2006, has fueled tensions among some segments of the population. Macau's traditional manufacturing industry has been in a slow decline. In 2006, exports of textiles and garments generated only $1.8 billion compared to $6.9 billion in gross gaming receipts. Macau's textile industry will continue to move to the mainland because of the termination in 2005 of the Multi-Fiber Agreement, which provided a near guarantee of export markets, leaving the territory more dependent on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. However, the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Macau and mainland China that came into effect on 1 January 2004 offers many Macau-made products tariff-free access to the mainland. Macau's currency, the Pataca, is closely tied to the Hong Kong dollar, which is also freely accepted in the territory. | A majority of the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though most of the nomads and many subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for half of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In the past, drought and economic mismanagement have resulted in a buildup of foreign debt. In March 1999, the government signed an agreement with a joint World Bank-IMF mission on a $54 million enhanced structural adjustment facility (ESAF). Mauritania withdrew its membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2000. Privatization and debt relief are in full swing, and the rate of economic growth appears to be accelerating, especially in the construction, telecommunication, and information sectors. Diamonds and petroleum are beginning to be explored and exploited. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.37 billion kWh (2006) | 140.4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2006) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 964.4 million kWh (2006) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.67 billion kWh (2006) | 151 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
82.78% hydro: 17.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 m |
lowest point:
Sebkha de Ndrhamcha -3 m highest point: Kediet Ijill 910 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal which is the only perennial river |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member) | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Chinese 95.7%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry) 1%, other 3.3% (2001 census) | mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30% |
Exchange rates | patacas per US dollar - 8.011 (2007), 8.0015 (2006), 8.011 (2005), 8.022 (2004), 8.021 (2003) | ouguiyas per US dollar - 250.870 (December 2000), 238.923 (2000), 209.514 (1999), 188.476 (1998), 151.853 (1997), 137.222 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of one government secretary, three legislators, four businessmen, one pro-Beijing unionist, and one pro-Beijing educator elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member Election Committee for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 29 August 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected received 296 votes; three members submitted blank ballots; one member was absent |
chief of state:
President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984) head of government: Prime Minister Cheik El Avia Ould Mohamed KHOUNA (since 17 November 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held NA December 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected with 90.9% of the vote |
Exports | 21 bbl/day (2005) | $333 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, textiles, footwear, toys, electronics, machinery and parts | iron ore, fish and fish products, gold |
Exports - partners | US 44.1%, China 14.8%, Hong Kong 11.3%, Germany 7.3%, UK 4.1% (2006) | Japan 18%, France 17%, Italy 16%, Spain 11% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller | green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $5.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 3.9% services: 96% (2006 est.) |
agriculture:
25% industry: 31% services: 44% (1997) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 16.6% (2006) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 22 10 N, 113 33 E | 20 00 N, 12 00 W |
Geography - note | essentially urban; an area of land reclaimed from the sea measuring 5.2 sq km and known as Cotai now connects the islands of Coloane and Taipa; the island area is connected to the mainland peninsula by three bridges | most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total:
7,660 km paved: 866 km unpaved: 6,794 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 29.9% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for drugs going into mainland China; consumer of opiates and amphetamines | - |
Imports | 13,870 bbl/day (2006) | $305 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials and semi-manufactured goods, consumer goods (foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco), capital goods, mineral fuels and oils | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | China 45.2%, Hong Kong 10.2%, Japan 8.4%, US 5.5%, Singapore 4.1%, France 4% (2006) | France 27%, Benelux 9%, Germany 7%, Spain 7% (1998) |
Independence | none (special administrative region of China) | 28 November 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% | 2.2% (1999) |
Industries | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys | fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
76.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.2% (2006) | 4.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WTO | ABEDA, ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 5 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 490 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Final Appeal in Macau Special Administrative Region | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts |
Labor force | 275,000 (2006) | 750,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | manufacturing 11.1%, construction 11.7%, transport and communications 6.3%, wholesale and retail trade 13.7%, restaurants and hotels 11.3%, gambling 19.8%, public sector 7.7%, financial services 2.6%, other services and agriculture 15.7% (2006) | agriculture 47%, services 39%, industry 14% |
Land boundaries | total: 0.34 km
regional border: China 0.34 km |
total:
5,074 km border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 4% other: 58% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Cantonese 87.9%, Hokkien 4.4%, Mandarin 1.6%, other Chinese dialects 3.1%, other 3% (2001 census) | Hasaniya Arabic (official), Pular, Soninke, Wolof (official), French |
Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system | a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (29 seats; 12 members elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 September 2005 (next in September 2009) election results: percent of vote - New Democratic Macau Association 18.8%, Macau United Citizens' Association 16.6%, Union for Development 13.3%, Union for Promoting Progress 9.6%, Macau Development Alliance 9.3%, others 32.4%; seats by political group - New Democratic Macau Association 2, Macau United Citizens' Association 2, Union for Development 2, Union for Promoting Progress 2, Macau Development Alliance 1, others 3; 10 seats filled by professional and business groups; seven members appointed by chief executive |
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; 17 up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (79 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 17 April 1998 (next to be held NA 2001); National Assembly - last held 11 and 18 October 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRDS 71, AC 1, independents and other 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 82.27 years
male: 79.44 years female: 85.25 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
51.14 years male: 49.06 years female: 53.29 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3% male: 95.3% female: 87.8% (2001 census) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 46.7% male: 53.4% female: 40% (1998 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | not specified | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of China | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $41 million (FY97/98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.7% (FY97/98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
624,375 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
302,699 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day | Independence Day, 28 November (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
noun:
Mauritanian(s) adjective: Mauritanian |
Natural hazards | typhoons | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | NEGL | iron ore, gypsum, fish, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold |
Net migration rate | 4.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Civil Service Union [Jose Maria Pereira COUTINHO]; Development Union [KWAN Tsui-hang]; Macau Development Alliance [Angela LEONG On-kei]; Macau United Citizens' Association [CHAN Meng-kam]; New Democratic Macau Association [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong]; United Forces
note: there is no political party ordinance, so there are no registered political parties; politically active groups register as societies or companies |
Action for Change or AC [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Assembly for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS (ruling party) [President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA]; Mauritanian Party for Renewal and Concorde or PMRC [Molaye El Hassen Ould JIYID]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality and Justice or PLEJ [Daouda M'BAGNIGA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progress Alliance or APP [Mohamed El Hafed Ould ISMAEL]; Popular Social and Democratic Union or UPSD [Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH]; Progress Force Union or UFP [Mohamed Ould MOLOUD]; Union for Progress and Democracy or UNDD [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]
note: parties legalized by constitution ratified 12 July 1991; however, politics continue to be tribally based |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Arab nationalists; Ba'athists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general] |
Population | 456,989 (July 2007 est.) | 2,747,312 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 50% (1996 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.841% (2007 est.) | 2.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bogue, Kaedi, Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Rosso |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 360,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
750 km (single track); note - owned and operated by government mining company standard gauge: 750 km 1.435-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) | Muslim 100% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.072 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.734 male(s)/female total population: 0.918 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | direct election 18 years of age for some non-executive positions, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: termination of monopoly over mobile-cellular telephone services in 2001 spurred sharp increase in subscriptions with mobile-cellular teledensity approaching 140 per 100 persons in 2006; fixed-line teledensity about 40 per 100 persons international: country code - 853; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 submarine cable network that provides links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; HF radiotelephone communication facility; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made) domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 178,013 (2007) | 26,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 794,323 (2007) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2006) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | generally flat | mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.03 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 6.22 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3.1% (2006) | 23% (1995 est.) |
Waterways | - | note:
ferry traffic on the Senegal River |