Martinique (2005) | Bahrain (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.4% (male 49,112/female 47,697)
15-64 years: 67.2% (male 145,531/female 145,250) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 20,423/female 24,887) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.8% (male 97,294; female 94,930)
15-64 years: 68% (male 266,351; female 187,473) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 10,807; female 10,383) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish |
Airports | 2 (2004 est.) | 4 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 2 1524 to 2437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir, installed in 1999, has pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of the amir's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa proclaimed himself king. In October 2002, Bahrainis elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. |
Birth rate | 14.14 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 19.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $1.8 billion
expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $700 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Manama |
Climate | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
Coastline | 350 km | 161 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | adopted late December 2000; Bahrani voters approved on 13-14 February 2001 a referendum on legislative changes (revised constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Bahrain
conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
Currency | - | Bahraini dinar (BHD) |
Death rate | 6.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 3.99 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $3.7 billion (2002) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald E. NEUMANN
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 321, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 273-300 FAX: [973] 272-594 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Khalifa bin Ali bin Rashid AL KHALIFA
chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-0741 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | NA; note - substantial annual aid from France (1998) | $150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from each of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait (2002) |
Economy - overview | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism, which employs more than 11,000 people, has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. | In Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil granted as aid. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from refining imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.095 billion kWh (2002) | 5.819 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.178 billion kWh (2002) | 6.257 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.38 (2002), 0.38 (2001), 0.38 (2000), 0.38 (1999), 0.38 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Yves DASSONVILLE (since 14 January 2004); note - took office 8 February 2004
head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
chief of state: King HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969)
head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples (2001 est.) | petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (2000) | US 4.5%, India 3.2%, Saudi Arabia 2.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions | red with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $9.91 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 35% services: 64% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $14,400 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 26 00 N, 50 33 E |
Geography - note | the island is dominated by Mount Pelee, which on 8 May 1902 erupted and completely destroyed the city of Saint Pierre, killing 30,000 inhabitants | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, which much of Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 2,105 km (2000) | total: 3,261 km
paved: 2,531 km unpaved: 730 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | crude oil, machinery, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2000) | Saudi Arabia 30.1%, US 11.7%, Japan 7.1%, Germany 6.5%, UK 5.6% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 15 August 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.09 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 18.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 0.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 50 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | High Civil Appeals Court |
Labor force | 165,900 (1998) | 295,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.38%
permanent crops: 9.43% other: 80.19% (2001) |
arable land: 4.35%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 91.3% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
Legal system | French legal system | based on Islamic law and English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last held on 28 March 2004 (next to be held by March 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - left-wing candidates 13, PPM 11, RPR 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCM 3, UDF 3, PMS 2, independents 2; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly (second round) - percent of vote by party - MIM 53.8%, PPM 30.6%; seats by party - MIM 28, PPM 9, other 4 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 2001 (next to be held September 2004); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held not later than June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, PS 1, MIM 1, left-wing candidate 1 (candidacy of the left-wing candidate was found invalid by the Constitutional Council; new elections will be called) |
bicameral Parliament consists of Shura Council (40 members appointed by the King) and House of Deputies (40 members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Deputies - last held 31 October 2002 (next election to be held NA 2006) election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - independents 21, Sunni Islamists 9, other 10 note: first elections since 7 December 1973; unicameral National Assembly dissolved 26 August 1975; National Action Charter created bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum 14 February 2001; first legislative session of Parliament held on 25 December 2002 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.04 years
male: 79.43 years female: 78.64 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 73.72 years
male: 71.28 years female: 76.24 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.7% male: 97.4% female: 98.1% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.1% male: 91.9% female: 85% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 234,599 GRT/336,528 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 1, includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Kuwait 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF) comprising Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Police Force, Amiri Guards, National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $526.2 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 6.7% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 222,242 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 121,739 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 15 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 6,126 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection |
Nationality | noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | periodic droughts; dust storms |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls |
Net migration rate | -0.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 1.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 20 km; oil 53 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Martinique Communist Party or PCM [Georges ERICHOT]; Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Pierre SUEDILE]; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Movement of Democrats and Ecologists for a Sovereign Martinique or Modemas [Garcin MALSA]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Jean MAREN] | political parties prohibited but politically oriented societies are allowed |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active |
Population | 432,900 (July 2005 est.) | 667,238
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.76% (2005 est.) | 1.61% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite, Marin | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 10.5%, Muslim 0.5%, Hindu 0.5%, other 3.5% (1997) | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.42 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female total population: 1.28 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA international: country code - 596; microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: modern system
domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 172,000 est (2001) | 152,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 319,900 (2002) | 58,543 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 4 (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment |
Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.71 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 15% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |