Mozambique (2001) | Honduras (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Cabo Delgado, Gaza, Inhambane, Manica, Maputo, Nampula, Niassa, Sofala, Tete, Zambezia | 18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Atlantida, Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan, Gracias a Dios, Intibuca, Islas de la Bahia, La Paz, Lempira, Ocotepeque, Olancho, Santa Barbara, Valle, Yoro |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.72% (male 4,124,093; female 4,152,135) 15-64 years: 54.53% (male 5,222,477; female 5,339,615) 65 years and over: 2.75% (male 221,678; female 311,059) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.9% (male 1,491,170/female 1,429,816)
15-64 years: 56.7% (male 2,076,727/female 2,077,975) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 113,747/female 137,061) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, cashew nuts, sugarcane, tea, cassava (tapioca), corn, rice, coconuts, sisal, tropical fruits; beef, poultry | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp |
Airports | 168 (2000 est.) | 116 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
22 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
146 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 92 (2000 est.) |
total: 105
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 84 (2006) |
Area | total:
801,590 sq km land: 784,090 sq km water: 17,500 sq km |
total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of California | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | Almost five centuries as a Portuguese colony came to a close with independence in 1975. Large-scale emigration by whites, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought, and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development. The ruling party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989, and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement with rebel forces ended the fighting in 1992. | Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and a half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. During the 1980s, Honduras proved a haven for anti-Sandinista contras fighting the Marxist Nicaraguan Government and an ally to Salvadoran Government forces fighting leftist guerrillas. The country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage. |
Birth rate | 37.2 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 28.24 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$466.9 million expenditures: $1.004 billion, including capital expenditures of $502.5 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $1.693 billion
expenditures: $1.938 billion; including capital expenditures of $106 million (2005 est.) |
Capital | Maputo | name: Tegucigalpa
geographic coordinates: 14 06 N, 87 13 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November; note - these new dates become effective in 2007 |
Climate | tropical to subtropical | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains |
Coastline | 2,470 km | 820 km |
Constitution | 30 November 1990 | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Mozambique conventional short form: Mozambique local long form: Republica de Mocambique local short form: Mocambique former: Portuguese East Africa |
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras
conventional short form: Honduras local long form: Republica de Honduras local short form: Honduras |
Currency | metical (MZM) | - |
Death rate | 24.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2000 est.) | $5.795 billion (2005 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sharon P. WILKINSON embassy: Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo mailing address: P. O. Box 783, Maputo telephone: [258] (1) 492797 FAX: [258] (1) 490114 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Charles A. FORD
embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 236-9320, 238-5114 FAX: [504] 236-9037 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Marcos Geraldo NAMASHULUA chancery: Suite 570, 1990 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 293-7146 FAX: [1] (202) 835-0245 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Roberto FLORES Bermudez
chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco honorary consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville |
Disputes - international | none | in 1992, International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border, but despite Organization of American States (OAS) intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca with consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not mentioned in the ICJ ruling, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca; Honduras claims Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize, but agreed to creation of a joint ecological park and Guatemalan corridor in the Caribbean in the failed 2002 Belize-Guatemala Differendum, which the OAS is attempting to revive; Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over a complex dispute over islands and maritime boundaries in the Caribbean Sea |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.04 billion (1998) | $557.8 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | Before the peace accord of October 1992, Mozambique's economy was devastated by a protracted civil war and socialist mismanagement. In 1994, it ranked as one of the poorest countries in the world. Since then, Mozambique has undertaken a series of economic reforms. Almost all aspects of the economy have been liberalized to some extent. More than 900 state enterprises have been privatized. A value-added tax, introduced in 1999, launched the government's comprehensive tax reform program. Pending are much needed commercial code reform and greater private sector involvement in the transportation, telecommunications, and energy sectors. Since 1996, inflation has been low and foreign exchange rates relatively stable. Albeit from a small base, Mozambique's economy grew at an annual 10% rate in 1997-99, one of the highest growth rates in the world. Growth slowed and inflation rose in 2000 due to devastating flooding in the early part of the year. Both indicators should recover in 2001. The country depends on foreign assistance to balance the budget and to pay for a trade imbalance in which imports greatly outnumber exports. The trade situation should improve in the medium term, however, as trade and transportation links to South Africa and the rest of the region have been improved and sizeable foreign investments are beginning to materialize. Among these investments are metal production (aluminum, steel), natural gas, power generation, agriculture, fishing, timber, and transportation services. Mozambique has received a formal cancellation of a large portion of its external debt through an IMF initiative and is scheduled to receive additional relief. | Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere with an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income and massive unemployment, is banking on expanded trade under the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and on debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. The country has met most of its macroeconomic targets, and began a three-year IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PGRF) program in February 2004. Growth remains dependent on the economy of the US, its largest trading partner, on continued exports of non-traditional agricultural products (such as melons, chiles, tilapia, and shrimp), and on reduction of the high crime rate. |
Electricity - consumption | 307 million kWh (1999) | 4.369 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 1.9 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 68 million kWh (1999) | 335 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 2.3 billion kWh (1999) | 4.338 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
13.04% hydro: 86.96% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Monte Binga 2,436 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
Environment - current issues | a long civil war and recurrent drought in the hinterlands have resulted in increased migration of the population to urban and coastal areas with adverse environmental consequences; desertification; pollution of surface and coastal waters | urban population expanding; deforestation results from logging and the clearing of land for agricultural purposes; further land degradation and soil erosion hastened by uncontrolled development and improper land use practices such as farming of marginal lands; mining activities polluting Lago de Yojoa (the country's largest source of fresh water), as well as several rivers and streams, with heavy metals |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection 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, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | indigenous tribal groups 99.66% (Shangaan, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, and others), Europeans 0.06%, Euro-Africans 0.2%, Indians 0.08% | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% |
Exchange rates | meticais per US dollar - 17,331.0 (January 2001), 5,199.8 (2000), 12,775.1 (1999), 11,874.6 (1998), 11.543.6 (1997), 11,293.8 (1996) | lempiras per US dollar - 18.92 (2005), 18.206 (2004), 17.345 (2003), 16.433 (2002), 15.474 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO (since 6 November 1986); note - before being popularly elected, CHISSANO was elected president by Frelimo's Central Committee 4 November 1986 (reelected by the Committee 30 July 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Pascoal MOCUMBI (since NA December 1994) cabinet: Cabinet elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO reelected president; percent of vote - Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO 52.29%, Afonso DHLAKAMA 47.71% |
chief of state: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); First Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006); Second Vice President (vacant); Third Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); First Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006); Second Vice President (vacant); Third Vice President (vacant) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held November 2009) election results: Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (PL) elected president - 49.8%, Porfirio "Pepe" LOBO Sosa (PN) 46.1%, other 4.1% |
Exports | $390 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | prawns 40%, cashews, cotton, sugar, citrus, timber; bulk electricity (2000) | coffee, shrimp, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber |
Exports - partners | EU 27%, South Africa 26%, Zimbabwe 15%, India 12%, US 5%, Japan 4% (1999 est.) | US 73.2%, Guatemala 2.9%, El Salvador 2.9% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with five blue, five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band; the stars represent the members of the former Federal Republic of Central America - Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which features a triangle encircled by the word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.1 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
44% industry: 19% services: 37% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 13.9%
industry: 31.2% services: 54.9% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 4.2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 S, 35 00 E | 15 00 N, 86 30 W |
Geography - note | - | has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast |
Highways | total:
30,400 km paved: 5,685 km unpaved: 24,715 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.5% highest 10%: 31.7% (1996-97) |
lowest 10%: 0.6%
highest 10%: 42.7% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | Southern African transit point for South Asian hashish, South Asian heroin, and South American cocaine probably destined for the European and South African markets; producer of cannabis (for local consumption) and methaqualone (for export to South Africa) | transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; corruption is a major problem; some money-laundering activity |
Imports | $1.4 billion (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs, textiles (2000) | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs (2000) |
Imports - partners | South Africa 44%, EU 16%, US 6.5%, Japan 6.5%, Pakistan 3%, India 3% (1999 est.) | US 53.1%, Guatemala 6.5%, El Salvador 4.1% (2005) |
Independence | 25 June 1975 (from Portugal) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.2% (1999) | 7.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | food, beverages, chemicals (fertilizer, soap, paints), petroleum products, textiles, cement, glass, asbestos, tobacco | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products |
Infant mortality rate | 139.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 25.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11.4% (2000 est.) | 8.8% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,200 sq km (2000 est.) | 800 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the court of final appeal; some of its professional judges are appointed by the president and some are elected by the Assembly); other courts include an Administrative Court, customs courts, maritime courts, courts marshal, labor courts
note: although the constitution provides for the creation of a separate Constitutional Court, one has never been established; in its absence the Supreme Court reviews constitutional cases |
Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress) |
Labor force | 7.4 million (1997 est.) | 2.54 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 81%, industry 6%, services 13% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 34%
industry: 21% services: 45% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
4,571 km border countries: Malawi 1,569 km, South Africa 491 km, Swaziland 105 km, Tanzania 756 km, Zambia 419 km, Zimbabwe 1,231 km |
total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
Land use | arable land:
4% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 56% forests and woodland: 18% other: 22% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 9.53%
permanent crops: 3.21% other: 87.26% (2005) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), indigenous dialects | Spanish, Amerindian dialects |
Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law | rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing influence of English common law; recent judicial reforms include abandoning Napoleonic legal codes in favor of the oral adversarial system; accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (250 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on a secret ballot to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Frelimo 48.54%, Renamo-UE 38.81%; seats by party - Frelimo 133, Renamo-UE 117 note: Renamo-UE ran as a multiparty coalition; none of the other opposition parties received the 5% required to win parliamentary seats |
unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128 seats; members are elected proportionally to the number of votes their party's presidential candidate receives to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held November 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 62, PN 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
36.45 years male: 37.25 years female: 35.62 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 69.33 years
male: 67.75 years female: 70.98 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 42.3% male: 58.4% female: 27% (1998 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.2% male: 76.1% female: 76.3% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, bordering the Mozambique Channel, between South Africa and Tanzania | Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and Nicaragua |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,125 GRT/7,024 DWT ships by type: cargo 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 136 ships (1000 GRT or over) 405,984 GRT/557,179 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 61, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 9, petroleum tanker 29, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 43 (Canada 1, China 3, Egypt 4, Greece 3, Hong Kong 2, Israel 1, Japan 4, South Korea 6, Lebanon 1, Mexico 1, Qatar 1, Singapore 11, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, US 1, Vietnam 1) (2006) |
Military branches | Army, Naval Command, Air and Air Defense Forces, Militia | Army, Navy (includes naval infantry), Honduran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Hondurena, FAH) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $35.1 million (2000 est.) | $52.8 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (2000 est.) | 2.55% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
4,627,052 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
2,670,933 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 June (1975) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun:
Mozambican(s) adjective: Mozambican |
noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran |
Natural hazards | severe droughts and floods occur in central and southern provinces; devastating cyclones | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast |
Natural resources | coal, titanium, natural gas, hydropower, tantalum, graphite | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 306 km; petroleum products 289 km
note: not operating |
- |
Political parties and leaders | Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frente de Liberatacao de Mocambique) or Frelimo [Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO, chairman]; Mozambique National Resistance - Electoral Union (Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana - Uniao Eleitoral) or Renamo-UE [Afonso DHLAKAMA, president] | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Saul ESCOBAR Andrade]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Matias FUNES]; Liberal Party or PL [Patricia RODAS]; National Innovation and Unity Party or PINU [Olban F. VALLADARES]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Gilberto GOLDSTEIN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras or CODEH; Confederation of Honduran Workers or CTH; Coordinating Committee of Popular Organizations or CCOP; General Workers Confederation or CGT; Honduran Council of Private Enterprise or COHEP; National Association of Honduran Campesinos or ANACH; National Union of Campesinos or UNC; Popular Bloc or BP; United Confederation of Honduran Workers or CUTH |
Population | 19,371,057
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; the 1997 Mozambican census reported a population of 16,099,246 (July 2001 est.) |
7,326,496
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 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (2000 est.) | 53% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.3% (2001 est.) | 2.16% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Beira, Inhambane, Maputo, Nacala, Pemba, Quelimane | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 16, shortwave 12 (2000) | AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) |
Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
3,131 km narrow gauge: 2,988 km 1.067-m gauge; 143 km 0.762-m gauge (1994) |
total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
fair system but not available generally (telephone density is only 3.5 telephones for each 1,000 persons) domestic: the system consists of open-wire lines and trunk connection by microwave radio relay and tropospheric scatter international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: NA international: country code - 504; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
Telephones - main lines in use | 65,354 (2000) | 494,400 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 18,500 (2000) | 1.282 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus in northwest, mountains in west | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains |
Total fertility rate | 4.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.59 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 21% (1997 est.) | 28% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 3,750 km (navigable routes) | 465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2005) |