Compare Maldives (2007) - Hong Kong (2008)

Compare Maldives (2007) z Hong Kong (2008)

	Maldives (2007)	Hong Kong (2008)

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	none (special administrative region of China)
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: 13% (male 476,089/female 434,326) 15-64 years: 74% (male 2,515,518/female 2,652,660) 65 years and over: 12.9% (male 419,479/female 482,340) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	coconuts, corn, sweet potatoes; fish	fresh vegetables; poultry, pork; fish
Airports	5 (2007)	2 (2007)
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: 2 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
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: 1,092 sq km land: 1,042 sq km water: 50 sq km
Area - comparative	about 1.7 times the size of Washington, DC	six 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.	Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years.
Birth rate	34.2 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	7.34 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $508 million (including foreign grants) expenditures: $671 million (2006 est.)	revenues: $36.9 billion expenditures: $29.4 billion (FY07-08 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)	-
Climate	tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)	subtropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall
Coastline	644 km	733 km
Constitution	adopted 1 January 1998	Basic Law, approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress, is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"
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: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region conventional short form: Hong Kong local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu local short form: Xianggang abbreviation: HK
Death rate	6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$482 million (2006 est.)	$588 billion (2007 est.)
Dependency status	-	special administrative region of China
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: Consul General James B. CUNNINGHAM consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong mailing address: PSC 461, Box 1, FPO AP 96521-0006 telephone: [852] 2523-9011 FAX: [852] 2845-1598
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	none (special administrative region of China); Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Washington and two other cities carries out normal liaison and communication with the US Government and other US entities
Disputes - international	none	none
Economic aid - recipient	$66.83 million (2005)	$6.95 million (2004)
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.	Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international trade. In 2006, the total value of goods and services trade, including the sizable share of reexports, was equivalent to 400% of GDP. The territory has become increasingly integrated with mainland China over the past few years through trade, tourism, and financial links. The mainland has long been Hong Kong's largest trading partner, accounting for 46% of Hong Kong's total trade by value in 2006. As a result of China's easing of travel restrictions, the number of mainland tourists to the territory has surged from 4.5 million in 2001 to 13.6 million in 2006, when they outnumbered visitors from all other countries combined. Hong Kong has also established itself as the premier stock market for Chinese firms seeking to list abroad. Bolstered by several successful initial public offerings in 2007, mainland companies by September 2007 accounted for one-third of the firms listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and over half of the Exchange's market capitalization. Hong Kong's service industry over the past decade has grown rapidly as its manufacturing industry has moved to the mainland and now accounts for 91% of the territory's GDP. Hong Kong's natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from 1989 to 2007, despite the economy suffering two recessions during the Asian financial crisis in 1997-98 and the global downturn in 2001-02. Hong Kong continues to link its currency closely to the US dollar, maintaining an arrangement established in 1983.
Electricity - consumption	157.1 million kWh (2005)	40.3 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	4.5 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	10.9 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - production	169 million kWh (2005)	38.6 billion kWh (2006)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Wilingili island in the Addu Atoll 2.4 m	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m
Environment - current issues	depletion of freshwater aquifers threatens water supplies; global warming and sea level rise; coral reef bleaching	air and water pollution from rapid urbanization
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: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member)
Ethnic groups	South Indians, Sinhalese, Arabs	Chinese 94.9%, Filipino 2.1%, other 3% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	rufiyaa per US dollar - 12.8 (2006), 12.8 (2005), 12.8 (2004), 12.8 (2003), 12.8 (2002)	Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.802 (2007), 7.7678 (2006), 7.7773 (2005), 7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003)
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: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003) head of government: Chief Executive Donald TSANG (since 24 June 2005) cabinet: Executive Council consists of 15 official members and 16 non-official members elections: chief executive elected for five-year term by 800-member electoral committee; last held on 25 March 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: Donald TSANG elected chief executive receiving 84.1% of the vote of the election committee; Alan LEONG received 15.9%
Exports	NA bbl/day	22,420 bbl/day (2006)
Exports - commodities	fish	electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material
Exports - partners	Thailand 33.1%, UK 14.3%, Sri Lanka 11.9%, Japan 10.3%, France 6.9%, Algeria 6.1% (2006)	China 47%, US 15.1%, Japan 4.9% (2006)
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	red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 16% industry: 7% services: 77% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 0.1% industry: 8.1% services: 91.8% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	18% (2006 est.)	5.8% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	3 15 N, 73 00 E	22 15 N, 114 10 E
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	more than 200 islands
Heliports	-	5 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	-	despite strenuous law enforcement efforts, faces difficult challenges in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine to regional and world markets; modern banking system provides conduit for money laundering; rising indigenous use of synthetic drugs, especially among young people
Imports	NA bbl/day	314,700 bbl/day (2006)
Imports - commodities	petroleum products, ships, foodstuffs, clothing, intermediate and capital goods	raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported)
Imports - partners	Singapore 23.2%, UAE 15.8%, India 11.1%, Malaysia 7.9%, Thailand 6.9%, Sri Lanka 5.7% (2006)	China 45.9%, Japan 10.3%, Taiwan 7.5%, Singapore 6.3%, US 4.8%, South Korea 4.6% (2006)
Independence	26 July 1965 (from UK)	none (special administrative region of China)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.9% (2004 est.)	-0.9% (2007 est.)
Industries	tourism, fish processing, shipping, boat building, coconut processing, garments, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand mining	textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks
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: 2.94 deaths/1,000 live births male: 3.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2005 est.)	2% (2007 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	ADB, APEC, BIS, ICC, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITUC, UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	20 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	High Court	Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Labor force	101,300 (2004)	3.64 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 22% industry: 18% services: 60% (1995)	manufacturing 6.5%, construction 2.1%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.3%, financing, insurance, and real estate 20.7%, transport and communications 7.8%, community and social services 19.5% note: above data exclude public sector (2007 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 30 km regional border: China 30 km
Land use	arable land: 13.33% permanent crops: 30% other: 56.67% (2005)	arable land: 5.05% permanent crops: 1.01% other: 93.94% (2001)
Languages	Maldivian Dhivehi (dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English spoken by most government officials	Chinese (Cantonese) 89.2% (official), other Chinese dialects 6.4%, English 3.2% (official), other 1.2% (2001 census)
Legal system	based on Islamic law with admixtures of English common law primarily in commercial matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on English common law
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	unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; in 2004, 30 seats indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 12 September 2004 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - pro-democracy 63%, pro-Beijing 37%; seats by party - (pro-Beijing 34) DAB 12, Liberal Party 10, FTU 1, independents 11; (pro-democracy 25) Democratic Party 9, CTU 2, ADPL 1, Frontier Party 1, NWSC 1, independents 11; non-voting LEGCO president 1
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 64.76 years male: 63.41 years female: 66.19 years (2007 est.)	total population: 81.68 years male: 78.99 years female: 84.6 years (2007 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: 93.5% male: 96.9% female: 89.6% (2002)
Location	Southern Asia, group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of India	Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China
Map references	Asia	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 3 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: 1,009 ships (1000 GRT or over) 34,556,075 GRT/57,423,309 DWT by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 499, cargo 135, chemical tanker 51, combination ore/oil 3, container 173, liquefied gas 24, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 91, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 8, vehicle carrier 8 foreign-owned: 617 (Belgium 4, Canada 39, China 309, Denmark 12, France 1, Germany 10, Greece 30, Indonesia 7, Japan 78, South Korea 6, Lebanon 1, Norway 30, Pakistan 1, Philippines 10, Portugal 1, Singapore 11, Syria 1, Taiwan 11, UAE 1, UK 32, US 22) registered in other countries: 275 (Bahamas 3, Belize 5, Bermuda 4, Cambodia 11, China 6, Cyprus 2, Honduras 1, India 1, Liberia 21, Malaysia 14, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 4, Mongolia 1, Norway 5, Panama 137, Philippines 2, Seychelles 1, Singapore 37, St Vincent and The Grenadines 7, Tuvalu 10, UK 2, unknown 7) (2007)
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)	defense is the responsibility of China
Military branches	Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF): Quick Reaction Force, Security Protection Group, Coast Guard (2007)	no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) includes elements of Ground Forces, Navy, and Air Force; these forces are under the direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and under administrative control of the adjacent Guangzhou Military Region
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.5% (2005 est.)	NA
National holiday	Independence Day, 26 July (1965)	National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day
Nationality	noun: Maldivian(s) adjective: Maldivian	noun: Chinese/Hong Konger adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong
Natural hazards	low level of islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise	occasional typhoons
Natural resources	fish	outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	4.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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	Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick FUNG Kin-kee]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung]; Civic Party [KUAN Hsin-chi]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong or DAB [TAM Yiu Cheng]; Democratic Party [Albert HO]; Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing]; League of Social Democrats [Raymond WONG]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun] note: political blocs include: pro-democracy - ADPL, Democratic Party, Frontier Party, League of Social Democrats; pro-Beijing - DAB, Liberal Party, The Alliance (a group of five generally pro-government and pro-business Legco members from functional constituencies); there is no political party ordinance, so there are no registered political parties; politically active groups register as societies or companies
Political pressure groups and leaders	various unregistered political parties	Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade Unions or CTU (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Federation of Trade Unions or FTU (pro-China) [CHENG Yiu-tong, executive councilor]; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China [Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG Man-kwong, president]; Neighborhood and Workers' Service Center or NWSC (pro-democracy); The Alliance [Bernard CHARNWUT, exco member]
Population	369,031 (July 2007 est.)	6,980,412 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	21% (2004)	NA%
Population growth rate	2.732% (2007 est.)	0.561% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Sunni Muslim	eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%
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: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.096 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.948 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	direct election - 18 years of age for a number of non-executive positions; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election - limited to about 220,000 members of functional constituencies and an 800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, central government bodies, and municipal organizations
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: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network international: country code - 852; multiple international submarine cables provide connections to Asia, US, Australia, the Middle East, and Western Europe; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China
Telephones - main lines in use	32,500 (2006)	3.87 million (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular	262,600 (2006)	9.913 million (2007)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2006)	55 (2 TV networks, each broadcasting on 2 channels) (2007)
Terrain	flat, with white sandy beaches	hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north
Total fertility rate	4.78 children born/woman (2007 est.)	0.98 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	NEGL% (2003 est.)	4.2% (2007 est.)

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