Marshall Islands (2001) | Netherlands Antilles (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
49.29% (male 17,808; female 17,101) 15-64 years: 48.61% (male 17,573; female 16,853) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 707; female 780) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.7% (male 27,383; female 26,122)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 69,233; female 75,956) 65 years and over: 8.1% (male 7,244; female 10,288) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit |
Airports | 16 (2000 est.) | 5 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2038 to 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
12 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
181.3 sq km land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein |
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | about the size of Washington, DC | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the islands between 1947 and 1962. | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe, and its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles. |
Birth rate | 45.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$80.1 million expenditures: $77.4 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (FY95/96 est.) |
revenues: $710.8 million
expenditures: $741.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | Majuro | Willemstad |
Climate | wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 370.4 km | 364 km |
Constitution | 1 May 1979 | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | Netherlands Antillean guilder (ANG) |
Death rate | 6.23 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $125 million (FY96/97 est.) | $1.35 billion (1996) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joan M. PLAISTED embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
chief of mission: Consul General Deborah A. BOLTON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad AN, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Disputes - international | claims US territory of Wake Island | none |
Economic aid - recipient | approximately $65 million annually from the US | IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million |
Economy - overview | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US provides roughly $65 million in annual aid. Negotiations were underway in 1999 for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, and the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties caused GDP to fall in 1996-98. | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or remained even in each of the past six years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 986.8 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 1.061 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
- |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian | mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000), 1.79 (1999), 1.79 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Mirna LOUISA-GODETT (since 11 August 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held by NA 2006) note: government coalition - PDB, DP-St. M, FOL, PLKP, PNP |
Exports | $28 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | fish, coconut oil, trochus shells | petroleum products |
Exports - partners | US, Japan, Australia | US 20.9%, Guatemala 12%, Venezuela 10.5%, Guyana 6.6%, Singapore 4.4%, Cuba 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $105 million (1998 est.), supplemented by approximately $65 million annual US aid | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 13% services: 72% (1995) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,670 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -5% (1998 est.) | 0% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 9 00 N, 168 00 E | 12 15 N, 68 45 W |
Geography - note | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao) |
Highways | total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks |
total: 600 km
paved: 300 km unpaved: 300 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center |
Imports | $58 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco | crude petroleum, food, manufactures |
Imports - partners | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Guam, Singapore | Venezuela 60.8%, Mexico 11.7%, US 9.7% (2002) |
Independence | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls, offshore banking (embryonic) | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) |
Infant mortality rate | 39.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (1997) | 0.4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO | Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 6 |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | NA | 89,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 10.2 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint Martin) 10.2 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 60% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 40% |
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (universally spoken and is the official language), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) predominates, English widely spoken, Spanish |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FOL 5, PAR 4, PNP 3, PLKP 2, DP-St.M 2, UPB 2, DP 1, MAN 1, PDB 1, WIPM 1 note: the government of Prime Minister Mirna LOUISA-GODETT is a coalition of several parties; current seats by party - PAR 4, PNP 3, FOL 2, MAN 2, UPB 2, DP-St. M 2, PDB 1, SEA 1, WIPM 1, other 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
65.84 years male: 64.04 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.38 years
male: 73.16 years female: 77.7 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 100% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - one includes Curacao and Bonaire north of Venezuela; the other is east of the Virgin Islands |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,768,406 GRT/16,242,699 DWT ships by type: bulk 63, cargo 9, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 29, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 87, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1, US 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 147 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,122,189 GRT/1,398,649 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 56, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 3, container 27, liquefied gas 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 15, passenger 1, refrigerated cargo 27, roll on/roll off 8, specialized tanker 1 note: includes foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 3, Denmark 2, Germany 43, Monaco 8, Netherlands 52, New Zealand 1, Norway 3, Peru 1, Spain 1, Sweden 3, UK 5 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | no regular military forces (a coast guard may be established); Police Force | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Netherlands Navy, Marine Corps, Royal Netherlands Air Force, National Guard, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 55,155 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 30,840 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 1,643 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April |
Nationality | noun:
Marshallese (singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese |
noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October |
Natural resources | phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] | Antillean Restructuring Party or PAR [Miguel POURIER]; C 93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Foundation Energetic Management Anti-Narcotics or FAME [Eric LODEWIJKS]; Labor Party People's Crusade or PLKP [Errol COVA]; National People's Party or PNP [Susanne F. C. CAMELIA-ROMER]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Kenneth GIJSBERTHA]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramon BOOI]; Patriotic Movement of Sint Maarten or SPA [Vance JAMES, Jr.]; People's Party or PAPU [Richard Hodi]; Pro Curacao Party or PPK [Winston LOURENS]; Saba Democratic Labor Movement [Steve HASSELL]; Saba Unity Party [Carmen SIMMONDS]; St. Eustatius Alliance or SEA [Kenneth VAN PUTTEN]; Serious Alternative People's Party or Sapp [Julian ROLLOCKS]; Social Action Cause or KAS [Benny DEMEI]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Will JOHNSTON]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT, Rignald LAK, Editha WRIGHT]
note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 70,822 (July 2001 est.) | 216,226 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.88% (2001 est.) | 0.9% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Majuro | Kralendijk, Philipsburg, Willemstad |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 9, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | NA | - |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Christian (mostly Protestant) | Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telex services domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein |
general assessment: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,000 (1996) | 76,000 (1995) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 365 (1996) | 13,977 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (of which two are US military stations) (1997) | 3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and two Venezuelan channels) (1997) |
Terrain | low coral limestone and sand islands | generally hilly, volcanic interiors |
Total fertility rate | 6.55 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.04 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1991 est.) | 15% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |