Compare Netherlands Antilles (2006) - Congo, Republic of the (2005)

Compare Netherlands Antilles (2006) z Congo, Republic of the (2005)

	Netherlands Antilles (2006)	Congo, Republic of the (2005)

Administrative divisions	none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) note: each island has its own government	10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune; Bouenza, Brazzaville, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha
Age structure	0-14 years: 23.9% (male 27,197/female 25,886) 15-64 years: 67.3% (male 71,622/female 77,710) 65 years and over: 8.7% (male 7,925/female 11,396) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 37.3% (male 571,011/female 563,414) 15-64 years: 59% (male 886,297/female 907,348) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 45,799/female 65,257) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit	cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products
Airports	5 (2006)	32 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 11 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 960 sq km land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin)	total: 342,000 sq km land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km
Area - comparative	more than five times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than Montana
Background	Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion is called Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe (France).	Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO, but ushered in a period of ethnic unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo is one of Africa's largest petroleum producers with significant potential for offshore development.
Birth rate	14.78 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	27.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $757.9 million expenditures: $949.5 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2004)	revenues: $870.1 million expenditures: $1.102 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	name: Willemstad (on Curacao) geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 68 56 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Brazzaville
Climate	tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds	tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator
Coastline	364 km	169 km
Constitution	29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended	approved by referendum 20 January 2002
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies	conventional long form: Republic of the Congo conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo
Death rate	6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	14.82 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$2.68 billion (2004)	$5 billion (2000 est.)
Dependency status	an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Consul General Robert E. SORENSON consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489	chief of mission: Ambassador Roger A. MEECE embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa)
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Jeffrey CORRION, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands	chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860
Disputes - international	none	about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area
Economic aid - recipient	$21.5 million IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million (2004)	$159.1 million (1995)
Economy - overview	Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or grown slightly in each of the past eight years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems hamper reform of the health and pension systems of an aging population.	The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings, contributing to a shortage of revenues. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in inflation of 61% in 1994, but inflation has subsided since. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. The reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. However, economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty.
Electricity - consumption	945.8 million kWh (2003)	573.6 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	250 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	1.017 billion kWh (2003)	348 million kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m
Environment - current issues	NA	air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian	Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3% note: Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that in 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997
Exchange rates	Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2005), 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE (since 26 March 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten (legislature) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held by 2007) note: government coalition - PAR, PNP, DP St. Maarten, UP Bonaire, WIPM Saba, DP Statia	chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second seven-year term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7%
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA
Exports - commodities	petroleum products	petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds
Exports - partners	US 29.4%, Panama 14.4%, Mexico 8.8%, Haiti 5.6%, Venezuela 4.9%, Bahamas, The 4.5% (2005)	China 26.8%, Taiwan 19.2%, North Korea 8.4%, US 7.3%, France 5.5%, South Korea 4.8% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten	divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1% industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 7.4% industry: 52% services: 40.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1% (2004 est.)	3.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	12 15 N, 68 45 W	1 00 S, 15 00 E
Geography - note	the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao)	about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them
Highways	-	total: 12,800 km paved: 1,242 km unpaved: 11,558 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center	-
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA
Imports - commodities	crude petroleum, food, manufactures	capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	Venezuela 52.3%, US 21.4%, Italy 4.9%, Netherlands 4.6% (2005)	France 32.7%, US 10.1%, Germany 6.2%, Italy 6%, China 5.2%, Netherlands 4.5% (2004)
Independence	none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)	15 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	0% (2002 est.)
Industries	tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao)	petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes
Infant mortality rate	total: 9.76 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 92.41 deaths/1,000 live births male: 98.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.1% (2003 est.)	1.8% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate)	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	10 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch)	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Labor force	83,600 (2005)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 1% industry: 20% services: 79% (2005 est.)	-
Land boundaries	total: 15 km border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint-Martin) 15 km	total: 5,504 km border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km
Land use	arable land: 10% permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (2005)	arable land: 0.51% permanent crops: 0.13% other: 99.36% (2001)
Languages	Papiamento 65.4% (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), English 15.9% (widely spoken), Dutch 7.3% (official), Spanish 6.1%, Creole 1.6%, other 1.9%, unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)	French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)
Legal system	based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence	based on French civil law system and customary law
Legislative branch	unicameral States or Staten (22 seats - Curacao 14, Bonaire 3, St. Maarten 3, St. Eustatius 1, Saba 1; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PAR 5, MAN 3, FOL 2, Forsa Korsou 2, National Alliance 2, PNP 2, UPB 2, DP St. E 1, DP St. M 1, BDP 1, WIPM 1 note: the government of Prime Minister Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE is a coalition of several parties	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by NA May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 76.03 years male: 73.76 years female: 78.41 years (2006 est.)	total population: 52.26 years male: 51.17 years female: 53.39 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.8% male: 89.6% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)
Location	Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and St. Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands	Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm	territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 152 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,289,462 GRT/1,671,649 DWT by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 13, cargo 68, chemical tanker 3, container 19, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 28, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 143 (Belgium 4, Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 60, Netherlands 54, Norway 5, Sweden 5, Turkey 9, UK 3, US 1) registered in other countries: 1 (Netherlands 1) (2006)	-
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands	-
Military branches	no regular military forces; National Guard, Police Force (2005)	Congolese Armed Forces (FAC): Army, Air Force (Armee de l'Air Congolaise), Navy, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$126.5 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	2.8% (2004)
National holiday	Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April	Independence Day, 15 August (1960)
Nationality	noun: Dutch Antillean(s) adjective: Dutch Antillean	noun: Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo
Natural hazards	Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October	seasonal flooding
Natural resources	phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)	petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower
Net migration rate	-0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	-	gas 53 km; oil 646 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Bonaire: Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramonsito BOOI] Curacao: Ban Vota [Norbert GEORGE]; C-93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; E Mayoria [Aurelio PEDRO]; Forsa Korsou [Nelson NAVARRO]; Liste Ni'un Paso Atras [Nelson PIERRE]; Movemiento Patriotiko Korsou [Reginald LAK]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Charles COOPER]; Partido Akshon Pa Prosperidat I Seguridat [Sonja BERKEMEYER]; Partido Laboral Krusada Popular or PLKP [Errol COVA]; Party for the Restructured Antilles or PAR [Emily de JONGH-ELHAGE]; People's National Party or PNP [Ersilia DE LANNOOY]; Pidjin [Jasmin PINEDO]; Pueblo Soberano [Herman WIELS]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT] Saba: Saba Labor Party [Akilah LEVENSTONE]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Ray HASSELL] Sint Eustatius: Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Progressive Labor Party [Clyde VAN PUTTEN]; St. Eustatius Alliance [Ingrid HOUTMAN-WHITFIELD] Sint Maarten: Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Freedom Slate of National Democratic Party [Theophilus PRIEST]; National Alliance or NA [William MARLIN]; People's Progressive Alliance or PPA [Gracita ARRINDELL]; St. Maarten People's Party [Johan LEONARD]; United People's Labor Party [Bienvenido RICHARDSON] note: political parties are indigenous to each island	the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal) [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president]; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR [leader NA]; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Unions (AVBO) and Employers Association (VBC)	Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC
Population	221,736 (July 2006 est.)	3,039,126 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 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA
Population growth rate	0.79% (2006 est.)	1.31% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Brazzaville, Djeno, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire
Radio broadcast stations	AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 0 (2004)	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001)
Railways	-	total: 894 km narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2004)
Religions	Roman Catholic 72%, Pentecostal 4.9%, Protestant 3.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, Methodist 2.9%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.7%, other Christian 4.2%, Jewish 1.3%, other or unspecified 1.2%, none 5.2% (2001 census)	Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: generally adequate facilities domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: country code - 599; submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	81,000 (2001)	7,000 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	200,000 (2004)	330,000 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and four Venezuelan channels) (2004)	1 (2002)
Terrain	generally hilly, volcanic interiors	coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin
Total fertility rate	1.99 children born/woman (2006 est.)	3.54 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	17% (2002 est.)	NA (2003)
Waterways	-	4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2004)

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