Compare Maldives (2007) - Barbados (2006)

Compare Maldives (2007) z Barbados (2006)

	Maldives (2007)	Barbados (2006)

Administrative divisions	19 atolls (atholhu, singular and plural) and the capital city; Alifu, Baa, Dhaalu, Faafu, Gaafu Alifu, Gaafu Dhaalu, Gnaviyani, Haa Alifu, Haa Dhaalu, Kaafu, Laamu, Lhaviyani, Maale (Male), Meemu, Noonu, Raa, Seenu, Shaviyani, Thaa, Vaavu	11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.9% (male 81,383/female 76,984) 15-64 years: 54% (male 101,699/female 97,518) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 5,619/female 5,828) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 20.1% (male 28,160/female 28,039) 15-64 years: 71.1% (male 97,755/female 101,223) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,508/female 15,227) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	coconuts, corn, sweet potatoes; fish	sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Airports	5 (2007)	1 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007)	-
Area	total: 300 sq km land: 300 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 431 sq km land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	about 1.7 times the size of Washington, DC	2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	The Maldives was long a sultanate, first under Dutch and then under British protection. It became a republic in 1968, three years after independence. Since 1978, President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM - currently in his sixth term in office - has dominated the islands' political scene. Following riots in the capital Male in August 2004, the president and his government pledged to embark upon democratic reforms, including a more representative political system and expanded political freedoms. Progress has been slow, however, and many promised reforms have been delayed indefinitely. Tourism and fishing are being developed on the archipelago.	The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance.
Birth rate	34.2 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	12.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $508 million (including foreign grants) expenditures: $671 million (2006 est.)	revenues: $847 million (including grants) expenditures: $886 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Capital	name: Male geographic coordinates: 4 10 N, 73 30 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Bridgetown geographic coordinates: 13 06 N, 59 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)	tropical; rainy season (June to October)
Coastline	644 km	97 km
Constitution	adopted 1 January 1998	30 November 1966
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Maldives conventional short form: Maldives local long form: Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa local short form: Dhivehi Raajje	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Barbados
Death rate	6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	8.67 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$482 million (2006 est.)	$668 million (2003)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Maldives; the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka is accredited to Maldives and makes periodic visits there	chief of mission: Ambassador Mary M. OURISMAN embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; CMR 1014, APO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Mohamed LATHEEF chancery: 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400E, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6195 FAX: [1] (212) 661-6405	chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York consulate(s): Los Angeles
Disputes - international	none	in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration that will result in a binding award challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters and the southern limit of Barbadian traditional fishing; joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea
Economic aid - recipient	$66.83 million (2005)	$9.1 million (1995)
Economy - overview	Tourism, Maldives' largest industry, accounts for 28% of GDP and more than 60% of the Maldives' foreign exchange receipts. Over 90% of government tax revenue comes from import duties and tourism-related taxes. Fishing is the second leading sector. Agriculture and manufacturing continue to play a lesser role in the economy, constrained by the limited availability of cultivable land and the shortage of domestic labor. Most staple foods must be imported. Industry, which consists mainly of garment production, boat building, and handicrafts, accounts for about 7% of GDP. The Maldivian Government began an economic reform program in 1989 initially by lifting import quotas and opening some exports to the private sector. Subsequently, it has liberalized regulations to allow more foreign investment. Real GDP growth averaged over 7.5% per year for more than a decade. In late December 2004, a major tsunami left more than 100 dead, 12,000 displaced, and property damage exceeding $300 million. As a result of the tsunami, the GDP contracted by about 3.6% in 2005. A rebound in tourism, post-tsunami reconstruction, and development of new resorts helped boost GDP by about 18 percent in 2006. The trade deficit has expanded sharply as a result of high oil prices and imports of construction material. Diversifying beyond tourism and fishing is the major challenge facing the government. Over the longer term Maldivian authorities worry about the impact of erosion and possible global warming on their low-lying country; 80% of the area is one meter or less above sea level.	Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into light industry and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002-03 mainly due to a decline in tourism. Growth was positive in 2005, as economic conditions in the US and Europe moderately improved.
Electricity - consumption	157.1 million kWh (2005)	761.7 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	169 million kWh (2005)	819 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Wilingili island in the Addu Atoll 2.4 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m
Environment - current issues	depletion of freshwater aquifers threatens water supplies; global warming and sea level rise; coral reef bleaching	pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	South Indians, Sinhalese, Arabs	black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6%
Exchange rates	rufiyaa per US dollar - 12.8 (2006), 12.8 (2005), 12.8 (2004), 12.8 (2003), 12.8 (2002)	Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM (since 11 November 1978); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM (since 11 November 1978) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president nominated by the Majlis; nomination must be ratified by a national referendum (at least a 51% approval margin is required); president elected for a five-year term; election last held 17 October 2003 (next to be held in 2008) election results: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM reelected in referendum held 17 October 2003; percent of popular vote - Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM 90.3%	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 7 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) 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; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	fish	sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
Exports - partners	Thailand 33.1%, UK 14.3%, Sri Lanka 11.9%, Japan 10.3%, France 6.9%, Algeria 6.1% (2006)	US 18.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 15%, UK 12.1%, Saint Lucia 8.4%, Jamaica 7.9%, Grenada 4.6%, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4.6% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	red with a large green rectangle in the center bearing a vertical white crescent; the closed side of the crescent is on the hoist side of the flag	three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 16% industry: 7% services: 77% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 6% industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	18% (2006 est.)	4.1% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	3 15 N, 73 00 E	13 10 N, 59 32 W
Geography - note	1,190 coral islands grouped into 26 atolls (200 inhabited islands, plus 80 islands with tourist resorts); archipelago with strategic location astride and along major sea lanes in Indian Ocean	easternmost Caribbean island
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	-	one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	petroleum products, ships, foodstuffs, clothing, intermediate and capital goods	consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners	Singapore 23.2%, UAE 15.8%, India 11.1%, Malaysia 7.9%, Thailand 6.9%, Sri Lanka 5.7% (2006)	NZ 45.9%, US 20.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 12% (2005)
Independence	26 July 1965 (from UK)	30 November 1966 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.9% (2004 est.)	-3.2% (2000 est.)
Industries	tourism, fish processing, shipping, boat building, coconut processing, garments, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand mining	tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Infant mortality rate	total: 53.25 deaths/1,000 live births male: 52.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 54.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 11.77 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.38 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2005 est.)	-0.5% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	50 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	High Court	Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services)
Labor force	101,300 (2004)	128,500 (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 22% industry: 18% services: 60% (1995)	agriculture: 10% industry: 15% services: 75% (1996 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 13.33% permanent crops: 30% other: 56.67% (2005)	arable land: 37.21% permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (2005)
Languages	Maldivian Dhivehi (dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English spoken by most government officials	English
Legal system	based on Islamic law with admixtures of English common law primarily in commercial matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral People's Council or Majlis (50 seats; 42 members elected by popular vote, 8 appointed by the president; to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 22 January 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 50	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 64.76 years male: 63.41 years female: 66.19 years (2007 est.)	total population: 72.79 years male: 70.79 years female: 74.82 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.3% male: 96.2% female: 96.4% (2000 census)	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 99.7% male: 99.7% female: 99.7% (2002 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of India	Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Map references	Asia	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 85,935 GRT/114,054 DWT by type: cargo 17, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Greece 1) registered in other countries: 2 (Panama 1, Tuvalu 1) (2007)	total: 58 ships (1000 GRT or over) 433,390 GRT/664,998 DWT by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 32, chemical tanker 7, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 57 (Bahamas, The 1, Canada 8, Greece 11, Lebanon 1, Monaco 1, Norway 29, UAE 1, UK 5) registered in other countries: 1 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006)
Military - note	Maldives has no regular armed forces; the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) includes ground forces, the Coast Guard, and a small, undermanned air element; with its small size and with little servable equipment, the MNDF is inadequate to prevent external aggression and is primarily tasked to reinforce the Maldives Police Service (MPS) and ensure security in the exclusive economic zone (2007)	the Royal Barbados Defense Force includes a land-based Troop Command and a small Coast Guard; the primary role of the land element is to defend the island against external aggression; the Command consists of a single, part-time battalion with a small regular cadre that is deployed throughout the island; it increasingly supports the police in patrolling the coastline to prevent smuggling and other illicit activities (2005)
Military branches	Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF): Quick Reaction Force, Security Protection Group, Coast Guard (2007)	Royal Barbados Defense Force: Troops Command, Coast Guard (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.5% (2005 est.)	NA
National holiday	Independence Day, 26 July (1965)	Independence Day, 30 November (1966)
Nationality	noun: Maldivian(s) adjective: Maldivian	noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial) adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
Natural hazards	low level of islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise	infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides
Natural resources	fish	petroleum, fish, natural gas
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Adhaalath (Justice) Party or AP [Abdul Majeed Abdul BARI]; Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (Maldivian People's Party) or DRP [Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM]; Islamic Democratic Party or IDP [Omar NASEER]; Maldivian Democratic Party or MDP [Mohamed NASHEED]; note - political parties were allowed to register in June 2005	Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders	various unregistered political parties	Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE]
Population	369,031 (July 2007 est.)	279,912 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	21% (2004)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.732% (2007 est.)	0.37% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Sunni Muslim	Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.964 male(s)/female total population: 1.046 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: telephone services have improved; each island now has at least 1 public telephone, and there are mobile cellular networks with expanding subscribership domestic: interatoll communication through microwave links; all inhabited islands and resorts are connected with telephone and fax service international: country code - 960; satellite earth station - 3 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)	general assessment: NA domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: country code - 1-246; satellite earth stations - 1 (Intelsat -Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia
Telephones - main lines in use	32,500 (2006)	134,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	262,600 (2006)	206,200 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2006)	1 (plus two cable channels) (2004)
Terrain	flat, with white sandy beaches	relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region
Total fertility rate	4.78 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.65 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	NEGL% (2003 est.)	10.7% (2003 est.)

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