Mauritius (2005) | Haiti (2003) | |
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 | 9 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand 'Anse, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est |
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: 42.7% (male 1,637,853; female 1,575,893)
15-64 years: 53.6% (male 1,962,975; female 2,073,353) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 131,784; female 145,959) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish | coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood |
Airports | 6 (2004 est.) | 12 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
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: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km water: 190 sq km |
Area - comparative | almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
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 native Arawak Amerindians - who inhabited the island of Hispaniola when it was discovered by Columbus in 1492 - were virtually annihilated by Spanish settlers within 25 years. In the early 17th century, the French established a presence on Hispaniola, and in 1697, Spain ceded to the French the western third of the island - Haiti. The French colony, based on forestry and sugar-related industries, became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean, but only through the heavy importation of African slaves and considerable environmental degradation. In the late 18th century, Haiti's nearly half million slaves revolted under Toussaint L'OUVERTURE and after a prolonged struggle, became the first black republic to declare its independence in 1804. Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most of its history since then, and it is now one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Over three decades of dictatorship followed by military rule ended in 1990 when Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE was elected president. Most of his term was usurped by a military takeover, but he was able to return to office in 1994 and oversee the installation of a close associate to the presidency in 1996. ARISTIDE won a second term as president in 2000, and took office early in 2001. However, a political crisis stemming from fraudulent legislative elections in 2000 has not yet been resolved. |
Birth rate | 15.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 34.06 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.231 billion
expenditures: $1.582 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $273 million
expenditures: $361 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 00/01 est.) |
Capital | Port Louis | Port-au-Prince |
Climate | tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May) | tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds |
Coastline | 177 km | 1,771 km |
Constitution | 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992 | approved March 1987; suspended June 1988, with most articles reinstated March 1989; in October 1991, government claimed to be observing the constitution; return to constitutional rule, October 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius
conventional short form: Mauritius |
conventional long form: Republic of Haiti
conventional short form: Haiti local long form: Republique d'Haiti local short form: Haiti |
Currency | - | gourde (HTG) |
Death rate | 6.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.36 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.78 billion (2004 est.) | $1.2 billion (1999) |
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 James B. Foley
embassy: 5 Harry S Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince telephone: [509] 222-0354, 222-0368, 222-0200, 222-0612 FAX: [509] 223-1641 |
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 (vacant); Chief of Mission Harry Frantz LEO
chancery: 2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-4090 FAX: [1] (202) 745-7215 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
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 | despite efforts to control illegal migration, destitute Haitians continue to cross into Dominican Republic; claims US-administered Navassa Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $42 million (1997) | $120 million (FY02) |
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). | About 80% of the population lives in abject poverty. Nearly 70% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming and employs about two-thirds of the economically active work force. Following legislative elections in May 2000, fraught with irregularities, international donors - including the US and EU - suspended almost all aid to Haiti. The economy shrank an estimated 1.2% in 2001 and an estimated 0.9% in 2002. The contraction will likely intensify in 2003 unless a political agreement with donors is reached on economic policy. Suspended aid and loan disbursements totaled more than $500 million at the start of 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.707 billion kWh (2002) | 539.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.836 billion kWh (2002) | 580 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 60.3%
hydro: 39.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Piton 828 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution, degradation of coral reefs | extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water |
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, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2% | black 95%, mulatto and white 5% |
Exchange rates | Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.499 (2004), 27.902 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.25 (2000) | gourdes per US dollar - 29.25 (2002), 24.43 (2001), 21.17 (2000), 16.94 (1999), 16.77 (1998) |
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: President Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE (since 7 February 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Yvon NEPTUNE (since 4 March 2002); note - former Prime Minister CHERESTAL resigned in January 2002 cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president, ratified by the National Assembly election results: Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE elected president; percent of vote - Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE 92% |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses | manufactures, coffee, oils, cocoa |
Exports - partners | UK 33.1%, France 20.4%, US 14.8%, Madagascar 5.1%, Italy 4.1% (2004) | US 83.9%, Dominican Republic 6.6%, Canada 2.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green | two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a centered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms, which contains a palm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearing the motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $10.6 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 7.6%
industry: 30% services: 62.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 30%
industry: 20% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $12,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.7% (2004 est.) | -0.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 17 S, 57 33 E | 19 00 N, 72 25 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 | shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) |
Highways | total: 2,000 km
paved: 1,960 km (including 60 km of expressways) unpaved: 40 km (2002) |
total: 4,160 km
paved: 1,011 km unpaved: 3,149 km (1999 est.) |
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 | major Caribbean transshipment point for cocaine en route to the US and Europe; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Haiti for illicit financial transactions; pervasive corruption |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials |
Imports - partners | South Africa 11.3%, China 9.4%, India 9.3%, France 9.2%, Bahrain 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (2004) | US 53.4%, Dominican Republic 5.3%, Colombia 3.4% (2002) |
Independence | 12 March 1968 (from UK) | 1 January 1804 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | NA |
Industries | food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism | sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly industries based on imported parts |
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: 76.01 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 81.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2004 est.) | 11.9% (2001 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 | ACCT, ACP, Caricom, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 200 sq km (2000 est.) | 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation |
Labor force | 560,000 (2004 est.) | 3.6 million
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1995) |
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 66%, services 25%, industry 9% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km |
Land use | arable land: 49.26%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001) |
arable land: 20.32%
permanent crops: 12.7% other: 66.98% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4% (official), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census) | French (official), Creole (official) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas | based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale consists of the Senate (27 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (83 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held for two-thirds of seats 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 9 July boycotted by the opposition; seven seats still disputed; election for remaining one-third held on 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 30 July boycotted by the opposition; one vacant seat rerun 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 26, independent 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 73, MOCHRENA 3, PLB 2, OPL 1, vacant 1, other minor parties and independents 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.38 years
male: 68.4 years female: 76.41 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 51.61 years
male: 50.36 years female: 52.92 years (2003 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 can read and write
total population: 52.9% male: 54.8% female: 51.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar | Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic |
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 |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 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) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard) | Haitian National Police (HNP)
note: the regular Haitian Army, Navy, and Air Force have been demobilized but still exist on paper until or unless they are constitutionally abolished |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $12.5 million (2004) | $50 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.2% (2004) | 1.3% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,735,845 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 944,474 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 94,349 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 March (1968) | Independence Day, 1 January (1804) |
Nationality | noun: Mauritian(s)
adjective: Mauritian |
noun: Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
Natural hazards | cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | arable land, fish | bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -4.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 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] | Alliance for the Liberation and Advancement of Haiti or ALAH [Reynold GEORGES]; Assembly of Progressive National Democrats or RDNP [Leslie MANIGAT]; Convergence (opposition coalition composed of ESPACE, OPL, and MOCHRENA) [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES, Evans PAUL, Luc MESADIEU, Victor BENOIT]; Democratic Consultation Group coalition or ESPACE [Evans PAUL, Victor BENOIT] composed of the following parties: National Congress of Democratic Movements or KONAKOM, National Progressive Revolutionary Party or PANPRA, Generation 2004, and Haiti Can; Haitian Christian Democratic Party or PDCH [Marie-France CLAUDE]; Haitian Democratic Party or PADEM [Clark PARENT]; Lavalas Family or FL [Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE]; Mobilization for National Development or MDN [Hubert DE RONCERAY]; Movement for National Reconstruction or MRN [Rene THEODORE]; Movement for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti or MIDH [Marc BAZIN]; Movement for the Organization of the Country or MOP [Gesner COMEAU and Jean MOLIERE]; National Cooperative Action Movement or MKN [Volrick Remy JOSEPH]; National Front for Change and Democracy or FNCD [Evans PAUL and Turneb DELPE]; New Christian Movement for a New Haiti or MOCHRENA [Luc MESADIEU]; Open the Gate or PLB [Renaud BERNARDIN]; Struggling People's Organization or OPL [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | various labor unions | Autonomous Haitian Workers or CATH; Confederation of Haitian Workers or CTH; Federation of Workers Trade Unions or FOS; National Popular Assembly or APN; Papaye Peasants Movement or MPP; Popular Organizations Gathering Power or PROP; Roman Catholic Church |
Population | 1,230,602 (July 2005 est.) | 7,527,817
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (2001 est.) | 80% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.84% (2005 est.) | 1.67% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Port Louis | Cap-Haitien, Gonaives, Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Miragoane, Port-au-Prince, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002) | AM 41, FM 26, shortwave 0 (1999) |
Railways | - | total: 40 km
narrow gauge: 40 km 0.760-m gauge; single-track note: privately owned industrial line; closed in early 1990s (2001 est.) |
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) | Roman Catholic 80%, Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist 1%, other 1%), none 1%, other 3% (1982)
note: roughly half of the population also practices Voodoo |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 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: domestic facilities barely adequate; international facilities slightly better
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay trunk service international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 348,200 (2003) | 60,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 462,400 (2003) | over 180,000 (January 2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (plus several repeaters) (1997) | 2 (plus a cable TV service) (1997) |
Terrain | small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau | mostly rough and mountainous |
Total fertility rate | 1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 4.86 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.8% (2004 est.) | widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | NEGL; less than 100 km navigable |