Northern Mariana Islands (2002) | Namibia (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (commonwealth in political union with the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are four municipalities at the second order; Northern Islands, Rota, Saipan, Tinian | 13 regions; Caprivi, Erongo, Hardap, Karas, Khomas, Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 23.4% (male 9,208; female 8,902)
15-64 years: 74.8% (male 27,041; female 30,781) 65 years and over: 1.8% (male 690; female 689) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.2% (male 393,878/female 387,147)
15-64 years: 58.1% (male 596,557/female 591,350) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 34,245/female 40,970) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, fruits, vegetables; cattle | millet, sorghum, peanuts, grapes; livestock; fish |
Airports | 6 (2001) | 137 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 21
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 116
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 22 914 to 1,523 m: 72 under 914 m: 20 (2006) |
Area | total: 477 sq km
land: 477 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian |
total: 825,418 sq km
land: 825,418 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than half the size of Alaska |
Background | Under US administration as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands decided in the 1970s not to seek independence but instead to forge closer links with the US. Negotiations for territorial status began in 1972. A covenant to establish a commonwealth in political union with the US was approved in 1975. A new government and constitution went into effect in 1978. | 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. |
Birth rate | 20.29 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 24.32 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $193 million
expenditures: $223 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY 2001/02 est.) |
revenues: $1.945 billion
expenditures: $2.039 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Saipan | name: Windhoek
geographic coordinates: 22 34 S, 17 06 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in September; ends first Sunday in April |
Climate | tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October | desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic |
Coastline | 1,482 km | 1,572 km |
Constitution | Covenant Agreement effective 4 November 1986 and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978 | ratified 9 February 1990, effective 12 March 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
conventional short form: Northern Mariana Islands former: Mariana Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
conventional long form: Republic of Namibia
conventional short form: Namibia local long form: Republic of Namibia local short form: Namibia former: German Southwest Africa, South-West Africa |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 2.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 18.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $712.9 million (2005 est.) |
Dependency status | commonwealth in political union with the US; federal funds to the Commonwealth administered by the US Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Joyce BARR
embassy: Ausplan Building, 14 Lossen Street, Windhoek mailing address: Private Bag 12029 Ausspannplatz, Windhoek telephone: [264] (61) 221601 FAX: [264] (61) 229792 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Patrick NANDAGO
chancery: 1605 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-0540 FAX: [1] (202) 986-0443 |
Disputes - international | none | border commission has yet to resolve small residual disputes with Botswana 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; Namibia has supported and in 2004 Zimbabwe dropped objections to plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited, Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river |
Economic aid - recipient | extensive funding from US | ODA, $160 million (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | The economy benefits substantially from financial assistance from the US. The rate of funding has declined as locally generated government revenues have grown. The key tourist industry employs about 50% of the work force and accounts for roughly one-fourth of GDP. Japanese tourists predominate. Annual tourist entries have exceeded one-half million in recent years, but financial difficulties in Japan have caused a temporary slowdown. The agricultural sector is made up of cattle ranches and small farms producing coconuts, breadfruit, tomatoes, and melons. Garment production is by far the most important industry with employment of 17,500 mostly Chinese workers and sizable shipments to the US under duty and quota exemptions. | 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 world's worst inequality of income distribution. The Namibian economy is closely linked to South Africa with the Namibian dollar pegged one-to-one to the South African rand. Privatization of several enterprises in coming years may stimulate long-run foreign investment. Increased fish production and mining of zinc, copper, uranium, and silver spurred growth in 2003-05. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 2.372 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | - | 55 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | - | 1.065 billion kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2003) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 1.464 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Agrihan 965 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Konigstein 2,606 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of groundwater on Saipan may contribute to disease; clean-up of landfill; protection of endangered species conflicts with development | very limited natural fresh water resources; desertification; wildlife poaching; land degradation has led to few conservation areas |
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 | Chamorro, Carolinians and other Micronesians, Caucasian, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean | 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 includes Herero 7%, Damara 7%, Nama 5%, Caprivian 4%, Bushmen 3%, Baster 2%, Tswana 0.5% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Namibian dollars per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Juan N. BABAUTA (since NA January 2002); Lieutenant Governor Diego T. BENEVENTE (since NA January 2002) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held NA November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005) election results: Juan N. BABAUTA elected governor in a four-way race; percent of vote - Juan N. BABAUTA (Republican Party) 49% |
chief of state: President Hifikepunye POHAMBA (since 21 March 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Nahas ANGULA (since 21 March 2005) 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 15 November 2004 (next to be held November 2009) election results: Hifikepunye POHAMBA elected president; percent of vote - Hifikepunye POHAMBA 76.4%, Den ULENGA 7.3%, Katuutire KAURA 5.1%, Kuaima RIRUAKO 4.2%, Justus GAROEB 3.8%, other 3.2% |
Exports | $NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | garments | diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium; cattle, processed fish, karakul skins |
Exports - partners | US | South Africa 33.4%, US 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | blue, with a white, five-pointed star superimposed on the gray silhouette of a latte stone (a traditional foundation stone used in building) in the center, surrounded by a wreath | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $900 million
note: GDP numbers reflect US spending (2000 est.) |
- |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 9.7%
industry: 31.5% services: 58.8% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $12,500 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 3.2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 12 N, 145 45 E | 22 00 S, 17 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean | 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 |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 362 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1991) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA% 0.5%
highest 10%: NA% 64.5% |
Imports | $NA | 12,770 bbl/day NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | food, construction equipment and materials, petroleum products | foodstuffs; petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US, Japan | South Africa 85.2%, US (2004) |
Independence | none (commonwealth in political union with the US) | 21 March 1990 (from South African mandate) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, construction, garments, handicrafts | meatpacking, fish processing, dairy products; mining (diamonds, lead, zinc, tin, silver, tungsten, uranium, copper) |
Infant mortality rate | 5.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 48.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 51.99 deaths/1,000 live births female: 44.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (1997 est.) | 2.3% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), SPC | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 80 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Commonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court; Federal District Court | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission) |
Labor force | 6,006 total indigenous labor force; 2,699 unemployed; 28,717 foreign workers (1995) | 820,000 (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture: 47%
industry: 20% services: 33% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 3,936 km
border countries: Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 967 km, Zambia 233 km |
Land use | arable land: 15.22%
permanent crops: 6.52% other: 78.26% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.99%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 99% (2005) |
Languages | English, Chamorro, Carolinian
note: 86% of population speaks a language other than English at home |
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 US system, except for customs, wages, immigration laws, and taxation | based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution |
Legislative branch | bicameral Legislature consists of the Senate (9 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year staggered terms) and the House of Representatives (18 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 5 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2003); House of Representatives - last held 5 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 4, Democratic Party 3, Reform Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 16, Democratic Party 1, Covenant Party 1 note: the Northern Mariana Islands does not have a nonvoting delegate in the US Congress; instead, it has an elected official or "resident representative" located in Washington, DC; seats by party - Republican Party 1 (Pedro A. TENORIO) |
bicameral legislature consists of the National Council (26 seats; 2 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 29-30 November 2004 (next to be held November 2010); National Assembly - last held 15-16 November 2004 (next to be held November 2009) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - SWAPO 89.7%, UDF 4.7%, NUDO 2.8%, DTA 1.9%; seats by party - SWAPO 24, UDF 1, DTA 1; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - SWAPO 75.1%, COD 7.2%, DTA 5%, NUDO 4.1%, UDF 3.5%, RP 1.9%, MAG 0.8%; seats by party - SWAPO 55, COD 5, DTA 4, NUDO 3, UDF 3, RP 1, MAG 1 note: the National Council is primarily an advisory body |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.95 years
male: 72.85 years female: 79.23 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 43.39 years
male: 44.46 years female: 42.29 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 96% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84% male: 84.4% female: 83.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and South Africa |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,265 GRT/3,605 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Namibian Defense Force: Army, Air Wing, Navy (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $149.5 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.3% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Commonwealth Day, 8 January (1978) | Independence Day, 21 March (1990) |
Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun: Namibian(s)
adjective: Namibian |
Natural hazards | active volcanoes on Pagan and Agrihan; typhoons (especially August to November) | prolonged periods of drought |
Natural resources | arable land, fish | diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, zinc, salt, hydropower, fish
note: suspected deposits of oil, coal, and iron ore |
Net migration rate | 17.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Dr. Carlos S. CAMACHO]; Republican Party [Benigno R. FITIAL] | Congress of Democrats or COD [Ben ULENGA]; Democratic Turnhalle Alliance of Namibia or DTA [Katuutire KAURA, president]; Monitor Action Group or MAG [Jurie VILJOEN]; South West Africa People's Organization or SWAPO [Sam Shafishuna NUJOMA]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Justus GAROEB]; Republican Party or RP [Henk MUDGE]; National Unity Democratic Organization or NUDO [Kuaima RIRUAKO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 77,311 (July 2002 est.) | 2,044,147
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 | NA% | the UNDP's 2005 Human Development Report indicated that 34.9% of the population live on $1 per day and 55.8% live on $2 per day |
Population growth rate | 3.49% (2002 est.) | 0.59% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saipan, Tinian | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 39, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | NA | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 2,382 km
narrow gauge: 2,382 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Christian (Roman Catholic majority, although traditional beliefs and taboos may still be found) | Christian 80% to 90% (Lutheran 50% at least), indigenous beliefs 10% to 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 21,000 (1996) | 127,900 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,200 (1995) | 495,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (on Saipan and one station planned for Rota; in addition, two cable services on Saipan provide varied programming from satellite networks) (1997) | 8 (plus about 20 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic | mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.76 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 3.06 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 35% (1998) |
Waterways | none | - |