Compare Netherlands Antilles (2008) - Equatorial Guinea (2007)

Compare Netherlands Antilles (2008) z Equatorial Guinea (2007)

	Netherlands Antilles (2008)	Equatorial Guinea (2007)

Administrative divisions	none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) note: each island has its own government	7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas
Age structure	0-14 years: 23.6% (male 27,020/female 25,726) 15-64 years: 67.4% (male 72,449/female 78,259) 65 years and over: 9% (male 8,243/female 11,955) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 41.5% (male 114,816/female 113,688) 15-64 years: 54.8% (male 145,740/female 156,097) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,957/female 11,903) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit	coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber
Airports	5 (2007)	5 (2007)
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 (2007)	total: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
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: 28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	more than five times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than Maryland
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, called Saint Martin, is an overseas collectivity of France.	Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the population's living standards.
Birth rate	14.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	35.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $757.9 million expenditures: $949.5 million (2004)	revenues: $3.546 billion expenditures: $1.516 billion (2006 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)	name: Malabo geographic coordinates: 3 45 N, 8 47 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds	tropical; always hot, humid
Coastline	364 km	296 km
Constitution	29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended	approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995
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 Equatorial Guinea conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial/Republique de Guinee equatoriale local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial/Guinee equatoriale former: Spanish Guinea
Death rate	6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	15.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$2.68 billion (2004)	$229 million (2006 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 Donald C. JOHNSON embassy: adjacent to the golf course at the base of Mont Febe; note - relocated embassy is opened for limited functions; inquiries should continue to be directed to the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon mailing address: B.P. 817, Yaounde, Cameroon; US Embassy Yaounde, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 220 15 00 FAX: [237] 220 16 20
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 Purificacion ANGUE ONDO chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252
Disputes - international	none	in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River and imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision delay final delimitation; UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane and lesser islands and to create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay
Economic aid - recipient	$21.32 million note: IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million (2004)	$NA (2005)
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. Most of the oil Netherlands Antilles imports for its refineries come from Venezuela. 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 discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993, because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Government officials and their family members own most businesses. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth remained strong in 2006, led by oil. Equatorial Guinea now has the fourth highest per capita income in the world, after Luxembourg, Bermuda, and Jersey.
Electricity - consumption	891 million kWh (2005)	26.04 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	1.175 billion kWh (2005)	28 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m
Environment - current issues	NA	tap water is not potable; deforestation
Environment - international 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, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	mixed black 85%, other 15% (includes Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian)	Fang 85.7%, Bubi 6.5%, Mdowe 3.6%, Annobon 1.6%, Bujeba 1.1%, other 1.4% (1994 census)
Exchange rates	Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - NA (2007), 1.79 (2006), 1.79 (2005), 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.4 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002)
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 2010) note: government coalition - PAR, PNP, DP-St. M, UPB, WIPM Saba, DP-St. E	chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup) head of government: Prime Minister Ricardo Mangue Obama NFUBEA (since 14 August 2006); First Deputy Prime Minister Mercelino Oyono NTUTUMU (since 15 June 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held in December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud
Exports	217,800 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	petroleum products	petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa
Exports - partners	US 27.2%, Panama 11.4%, Mexico 9%, Germany 6.2%, Haiti 5.3%, Singapore 4.8%, Bahamas, The 4.2% (2006)	China 30.9%, US 22.3%, Spain 12.7%, Taiwan 10.6%, Portugal 6.1% (2006)
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	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1% industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 3.1% industry: 92% services: 4.8% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1% (2004 est.)	18.6% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	12 15 N, 68 45 W	2 00 N, 10 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); the island of Saint Martin is the smallest landmass in the World shared by two independent states, the French territory of Saint Martin and the Dutch territory of Sint Maarten	insular and continental regions widely separated
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	282,500 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	crude petroleum, food, manufactures	petroleum sector equipment, other equipment
Imports - partners	Venezuela 71.1%, US 10.4%, Italy 3.7% (2006)	US 37.8%, Spain 9.5%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.9%, France 6.1%, South Korea 6.1%, UK 5.8%, Italy 5% (2006)
Independence	none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)	12 October 1968 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	30% (2002 est.)
Industries	tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao)	petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas
Infant mortality rate	total: 9.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 87.15 deaths/1,000 live births male: 93.17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.1% (2003 est.)	5% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	Caricom (observer), ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	NA	NA
Judicial branch	Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch)	Supreme Tribunal
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: Saint Martin 15 km	total: 539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km
Land use	arable land: 10% permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (2005)	arable land: 4.63% permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2005)
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)	Spanish 67.6% (official), other 32.4% (includes French (official), Fang, Bubi) (1994 census)
Legal system	based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence	partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom
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, PDB 1, WIPM 1 note: the government is a coalition of several parties	unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (100 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDGE 98, CPDS 2 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 76.24 years male: 73.96 years female: 78.65 years (2007 est.)	total population: 49.51 years male: 48.11 years female: 50.95 years (2007 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: 85.7% male: 93.3% 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 Sint Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 138 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,096,005 GRT/1,437,692 DWT by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 4, cargo 70, carrier 12, chemical tanker 3, container 10, liquefied gas 1, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 25, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 125 (Belgium 1, Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 48, Netherlands 53, Norway 5, Sweden 3, Turkey 12, US 1) (2007)	total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,745 GRT/3,434 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2007)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands	-
Military branches	no regular military forces; National Guard (2008)	National Guard (Army, with Coast Guard (Navy) and Air Wing) (2007)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	0.1% (2006 est.)
National holiday	Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX), 30 April (1909 and 1980)	Independence Day, 12 October (1968)
Nationality	noun: Dutch Antillean(s) adjective: Dutch Antillean	noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean
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	violent windstorms, flash floods
Natural resources	phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)	petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay
Net migration rate	-0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate 46 km; condensate/gas 5 km; gas 47 km; oil 31 km (2006)
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	Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP
Political pressure groups and leaders	Unions (AVBO) and Employers Association (VBC)	NA
Population	223,652 (July 2007 est.)	551,201 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA%
Population growth rate	0.777% (2007 est.)	2.015% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 0 (2003)	AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2001)
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)	nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.926 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.929 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.934 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.752 male(s)/female total population: 0.957 male(s)/female (2007 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; the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the Americas-2 submarine cable systems provide connectivity to Central America, parts of South America and the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: digital fixed-line network in most major urban areas and good mobile coverage domestic: fixed-line density is about 2 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has been increasing and in 2005 stood at about 20 percent of the population international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	81,000 (2001)	10,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	200,000 (2004)	96,900 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and 4 Venezuelan channels) (2003)	1 (2001)
Terrain	generally hilly, volcanic interiors	coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic
Total fertility rate	1.99 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.48 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	17% (2002 est.)	30% (1998 est.)

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