Compare Mauritius (2005) - Barbados (2006)

Compare Mauritius (2005) z Barbados (2006)

	Mauritius (2005)	Barbados (2006)

Administrative divisions	9 districts and 3 dependencies; Agalega Islands, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues, Savanne	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: 24.4% (male 151,043/female 148,847) 15-64 years: 69.1% (male 424,472/female 425,974) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 31,506/female 48,760) (2005 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	sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish	sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Airports	6 (2004 est.)	1 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)	-
Area	total: 2,040 sq km land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues	total: 431 sq km land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC	2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.	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	15.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	12.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.231 billion expenditures: $1.582 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $847 million (including grants) expenditures: $886 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Capital	Port Louis	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, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)	tropical; rainy season (June to October)
Coastline	177 km	97 km
Constitution	12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992	30 November 1966
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius conventional short form: Mauritius	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Barbados
Death rate	6.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	8.67 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$1.78 billion (2004 est.)	$668 million (2003)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador John PRICE embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534	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 Usha JEETAH chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983	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	Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship but no right to patriation in the UK; claims French-administered Tromelin Island	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	$42 million (1997)	$9.1 million (1995)
Economy - overview	Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on expanding local financial institutions and building a domestic information telecommunications industry. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).	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	1.707 billion kWh (2002)	761.7 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	1.836 billion kWh (2002)	819 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Piton 828 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m
Environment - current issues	water pollution, degradation of coral reefs	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, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands 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	Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%	black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6%
Exchange rates	Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.499 (2004), 27.902 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.25 (2000)	Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President Abdool Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA%; note - Karl OFFMANN stepped down on 30 September 2003	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	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses	sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
Exports - partners	UK 33.1%, France 20.4%, US 14.8%, Madagascar 5.1%, Italy 4.1% (2004)	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	1 July - 30 June	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green	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: 7.6% industry: 30% services: 62.4% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 6% industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $12,800 (2004 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	4.7% (2004 est.)	4.1% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	20 17 S, 57 33 E	13 10 N, 59 32 W
Geography - note	the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs	easternmost Caribbean island
Highways	total: 2,000 km paved: 1,960 km (including 60 km of expressways) unpaved: 40 km (2002)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry	one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center
Imports	NA	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals	consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners	South Africa 11.3%, China 9.4%, India 9.3%, France 9.2%, Bahrain 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (2004)	NZ 45.9%, US 20.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 12% (2005)
Independence	12 March 1968 (from UK)	30 November 1966 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	8% (2000 est.)	-3.2% (2000 est.)
Industries	food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism	tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Infant mortality rate	total: 15.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 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)	4.5% (2004 est.)	-0.5% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, 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	200 sq km (2000 est.)	50 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court	Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services)
Labor force	560,000 (2004 est.)	128,500 (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture and fishing 14%, construction and industry 36%, transportation and communication 7%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, finance 3%, other services 24% (1995)	agriculture: 10% industry: 15% services: 75% (1996 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 49.26% permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001)	arable land: 37.21% permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (2005)
Languages	Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4% (official), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)	English
Legal system	based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas	English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2	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: 72.38 years male: 68.4 years female: 76.41 years (2005 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: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 99.7% male: 99.7% female: 99.7% (2002 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar	Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Map references	Political Map of the World	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 22,946 GRT/27,102 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 6 (India 4, Switzerland 2) (2005)	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	-	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	National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard)	Royal Barbados Defense Force: Troops Command, Coast Guard (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$12.5 million (2004)	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.2% (2004)	NA
National holiday	Independence Day, 12 March (1968)	Independence Day, 30 November (1966)
Nationality	noun: Mauritian(s) adjective: Mauritian	noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial) adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
Natural hazards	cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards	infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides
Natural resources	arable land, fish	petroleum, fish, natural gas
Net migration rate	-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR]	Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders	various labor unions	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	1,230,602 (July 2005 est.)	279,912 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	10% (2001 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	0.84% (2005 est.)	0.37% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors	Port Louis	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002)	AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christian 8.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)	Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2005 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	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: small system with good service domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia	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	348,200 (2003)	134,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	462,400 (2003)	206,200 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (plus several repeaters) (1997)	1 (plus two cable channels) (2004)
Terrain	small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau	relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region
Total fertility rate	1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.)	1.65 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	10.8% (2004 est.)	10.7% (2003 est.)

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