Compare Namibia (2004) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

Compare Namibia (2004) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

	Namibia (2004)	British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

Administrative divisions	13 regions; Caprivi, Erongo, Hardap, Karas, Khomas, Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.4% (male 419,700; female 409,156) 15-64 years: 54% (male 527,553; female 528,386) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 30,427; female 38,811) (2004 est.)	-
Agriculture - products	millet, sorghum, peanuts; livestock; fish	-
Airports	136 (2003 est.)	1 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 21 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2004 est.)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 115 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 22 914 to 1,523 m: 71 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)	-
Area	total: 825,418 sq km land: 825,418 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago
Area - comparative	slightly more than half the size of Alaska	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	South Africa occupied the German colony of South-West Africa during World War I and administered it as a mandate until after World War II, when it annexed the territory. In 1966 the Marxist South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) guerrilla group launched a war of independence for the area that was soon named Namibia, but it was not until 1988 that South Africa agreed to end its administration in accordance with a UN peace plan for the entire region. Namibia won its independence in 1990 and has been governed by SWAPO since. Hifikepunye POHAMBA was elected president in November 2004 in a landslide victory replacing Sam NUJOMA who led the country during its first 14 years of self rule.	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.
Birth rate	33.51 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $1.434 billion expenditures: $1.62 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003)	-
Capital	Windhoek	-
Climate	desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds
Coastline	1,572 km	698 km
Constitution	ratified 9 February 1990; effective 12 March 1990	-
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Namibia conventional short form: Namibia former: German Southwest Africa, South-West Africa	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT
Currency	Namibian dollar (NAD); South African rand (ZAR)	-
Death rate	21.02 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Debt - external	$1.04 billion (2003 est.)	-
Dependency status	-	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Kevin J. McGUIRE embassy: Ausplan Building, 14 Lossen Street, Windhoek mailing address: Private Bag 12029 Ausspannplatz, Windhoek telephone: [264] (61) 221601 FAX: [264] (61) 229792	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Leonard Nangolo IIPUMBU chancery: 1605 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-0540 FAX: [1] (202) 986-0443	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international	commission established with Botswana to resolve small residual disputes along the Caprivi Strip, including the Situngu marshlands along the Linyanti River; Botswana residents protest Namibia's planned construction of the Okavango hydroelectric dam on Popa Falls; managed dispute with South Africa over the location of the boundary in the Orange River; Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe boundary convergence is not clearly defined or delimited; Angolan rebels and refugees still reside in Namibia	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; the UK resists the Chagossians' demand for an immediate return to the islands; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricted access to the largest island in the chain
Economic aid - recipient	ODA $160 million (2000 est.)	-
Economy - overview	The economy is heavily dependent on the extraction and processing of minerals for export. Mining accounts for 20% of GDP. Rich alluvial diamond deposits make Namibia a primary source for gem-quality diamonds. Namibia is the fourth-largest exporter of nonfuel minerals in Africa, the world's fifth-largest producer of uranium, and the producer of large quantities of lead, zinc, tin, silver, and tungsten. The mining sector employs only about 3% of the population while about half of the population depends on subsistence agriculture for its livelihood. Namibia normally imports about 50% of its cereal requirements; in drought years food shortages are a major problem in rural areas. A high per capita GDP, relative to the region, hides the great inequality of income distribution; nearly one-third of Namibians had annual incomes of less than $1,400 in constant 1994 dollars, according to a 1993 study. The Namibian economy is closely linked to South Africa with the Namibian dollar pegged to the South African rand. Privatization of several enterprises in coming years may stimulate long-run foreign investment. Mining of zinc, copper, and silver and increased fish production led growth in 2003.	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.
Electricity - consumption	603.1 million kWh (2001)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	-
Electricity - imports	578 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001)	-
Electricity - production	26.95 million kWh (2001)	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Konigstein 2,606 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m
Environment - current issues	very limited natural fresh water resources; desertification; wildlife poaching; land degradation has led to few conservation areas	NA
Environment - international agreements	party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	-
Ethnic groups	black 87.5%, white 6%, mixed 6.5% note: about 50% of the population belong to the Ovambo tribe and 9% to the Kavangos tribe; other ethnic groups are: Herero 7%, Damara 7%, Nama 5%, Caprivian 4%, Bushmen 3%, Baster 2%, Tswana 0.5%	-
Exchange rates	Namibian dollars per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000), 6.1095 (1999)	-
Executive branch	chief of state: President Hifikepunye POHAMBA (since November 2004) head of government: Prime Minister Theo-Ben GURIRAB (since 28 August 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 November 2004 (next to be held November 2009) election results: Hifikepunye POHAMBA elected president; percent of vote - NA%	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Charles A. HAMILTON (since 2002); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
Exports	NA (2001)	-
Exports - commodities	diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium; cattle, processed fish, karakul skins	-
Exports - partners	EU 79%, US 4% (2001)	-
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	-
Flag description	a large blue triangle with a yellow sunburst fills the upper left section and an equal green triangle (solid) fills the lower right section; the triangles are separated by a red stripe that is contrasted by two narrow white-edge borders	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag
GDP	purchasing power parity - $13.85 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 11.5% industry: 29.8% services: 58.7% (2003 est.)	-
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $7,200 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	3.3% (2003 est.)	-
Geographic coordinates	22 00 S, 17 00 E	6 00 S, 71 30 E
Geography - note	first country in the world to incorporate the protection of the environment into its constitution; some 14% of the land is protected, including virtually the entire Namib Desert coastal strip	archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility
Highways	total: 66,467 km paved: 9,172 km unpaved: 57,285 km (2000)	total: NA km paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	-
Imports	NA (2001)	-
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs; petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals	-
Imports - partners	US 50%, EU 31% (2001)	-
Independence	21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)	-
Industrial production growth rate	NA	-
Industries	meatpacking, fish processing, dairy products; mining (diamond, lead, zinc, tin, silver, tungsten, uranium, copper)	-
Infant mortality rate	total: 69.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 72.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 66.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	-
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	7.3% (2003)	-
International organization participation	ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	-
Irrigated land	70 sq km (1998 est.)	0 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission)	-
Labor force	760,000 (2003)	-
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 47%, industry 20%, services 33% (1999 est.)	-
Land boundaries	total: 3,936 km border countries: Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 967 km, Zambia 233 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0.99% permanent crops: 0% other: 99.01% (2001)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
Languages	English 7% (official), Afrikaans common language of most of the population and about 60% of the white population, German 32%, indigenous languages: Oshivambo, Herero, Nama	-
Legal system	based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply
Legislative branch	bicameral legislature consists of the National Council (26 seats; two members are chosen from each regional council to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly (72 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: National Council - elections for regional councils, to determine members of the National Council, held 15-16 November 2004 (next to be held November 2009); National Assembly - last held 15-16 November 2004 (next to be held November 2009) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SWAPO 55, COD 5, DTA 4, UDF 3, MAG 1, other 4 note: the National Council is primarily an advisory body	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 40.53 years male: 42.36 years female: 38.64 years (2004 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 84% male: 84.4% female: 83.7% (2003 est.)	-
Location	Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and South Africa	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia
Map references	Africa	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	none (2004 est.)	-
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016
Military branches	Namibian Defense Force: Army (including Naval Wing, Air Wing), Police	-
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$111.6 million (2003)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.5% (2003)	-
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 468,934 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 279,755 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 21 March (1990)	-
Nationality	noun: Namibian(s) adjective: Namibian	-
Natural hazards	prolonged periods of drought	NA
Natural resources	diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, zinc, salt, vanadium, natural gas, hydropower, fish note: suspected deposits of oil, coal, and iron ore	coconuts, fish, sugarcane
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Political parties and leaders	Congress of Democrats or COD [Ben ULENGA]; Democratic Turnhalle Alliance of Namibia or DTA [Katuutire KAURA, president]; Monitor Action Group or MAG [Kosie PRETORIUS]; South West Africa People's Organization or SWAPO [Sam Shafishuna NUJOMA]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Justus GAROEB]	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	-
Population	1,954,033 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 2004 est.)	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s, in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; in 2001, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	50% (2002 est.)	-
Population growth rate	1.25% (2004 est.)	-
Ports and harbors	Luderitz, Walvis Bay	Diego Garcia
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 39, shortwave 4 (2001)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,382 km narrow gauge: 2,382 km 1.067-m gauge (2003)	-
Religions	Christian 80% to 90% (Lutheran 50% at least), indigenous beliefs 10% to 20%	-
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	-
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: good system; about 6 telephones for each 100 persons domestic: good urban services; fair rural service; microwave radio relay links major towns; connections to other populated places are by open wire; 100% digital international: country code - 264; fiber-optic cable to South Africa, microwave radio relay link to Botswana, direct links to other neighboring countries; connected to Africa ONE and South African Far East (SAFE) submarine cables through South Africa; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (2002)	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	127,400 (2003)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	223,700 (2003)	-
Television broadcast stations	8 (plus about 20 low-power repeaters) (1997)	1 (1997)
Terrain	mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)
Total fertility rate	4.65 children born/woman (2004 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	35% (1998)	-

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