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Compare Northern Mariana Islands (2005) - Benin (2008)
Compare Northern Mariana Islands (2005) z Benin (2008)
| Northern Mariana Islands (2005) | Benin (2008) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.9% (male 8,332/female 7,646)
15-64 years: 78.5% (male 26,121/female 36,982) 65 years and over: 1.6% (male 646/female 635) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | coconuts, fruits, vegetables; cattle | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock |
| Airports | 5 (2004 est.) | 5 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
| Area | total: 477 sq km
land: 477 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
| 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. | Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. KEREKOU stepped down at the end of his second term in 2006 and was succeeded by Thomas YAYI Boni, a political outsider and independent. YAYI has begun a high profile fight against corruption and has strongly promoted accelerating Benin's economic growth. |
| Birth rate | 19.51 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $193 million
expenditures: $223 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY01/02 est.) |
revenues: $936.9 million
expenditures: $1.226 billion (2007 est.) |
| Capital | Saipan | name: Porto-Novo (official capital)
geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government) |
| Climate | tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
| Coastline | 1,482 km | 121 km |
| Constitution | Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978; Covenant Agreement effective 4 November 1986 | adopted by referendum 2 December 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 Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
| Death rate | 2.3 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | NA | $1.2 billion (2007) |
| 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 Gayleatha B. BROWN
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 21-30-06-50 FAX: [229] 21-30-03-84 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN
chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996 |
| Disputes - international | none | two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; Benin accused Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin, but border relations remain strained by rival gang clashes; Benin and Togo announced plans in 2006 to construct a joint hydroelectric dam on the Mona River at the southern end of the border |
| Economic aid - recipient | extensive funding from US | $374.7 million (2006) |
| 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 of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past seven years, but rapid population growth has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. Specific projects to improve the business climate by reforms to the land tenure system, the commercial justice system, and the financial sector were included in Benin's $307 million Millennium Challenge Account grant signed in February 2006. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture though the government annulled the privatization of Benin's state cotton company in November 2007 after the discovery of irregularities in the bidding process. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. An insufficient electrical supply continues to adversely affect Benin's economic growth though the government recently has taken steps to increase domestic power production. |
| Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 587 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh | 595 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | NA kWh | 105 million kWh (2005) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Agrihan 965 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
| Environment - current issues | contamination of groundwater on Saipan may contribute to disease; clean-up of landfill; protection of endangered species conflicts with development | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Asian 56.3%, Pacific islander 36.3%, Caucasian 1.8%, other 0.8%, mixed 4.8% (2000 census) | Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census) |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) |
| 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 14 January 2002); Lieutenant Governor Diego T. BENAVENTE (since 14 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 3 November 2001 (next to be held November 2005) election results: Juan N. BABAUTA elected governor in a four-way race; percent of vote - Juan N. BABAUTA (Republican Party) 42.8% |
chief of state: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2011) election results: Thomas YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - Thomas YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5% |
| Exports | NA | 0 bbl/day (2007) |
| Exports - commodities | garments | cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood |
| Exports - partners | US (2000) | China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
| 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 | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 33.2%
industry: 14.5% services: 52.3% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $12,500 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | NA | 4.5% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 15 12 N, 145 45 E | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
| Geography - note | strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
| Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
| 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%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 29% (2003) |
| Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point used by Nigerian traffickers for narcotics destined for Western Europe; vulnerable to money laundering due to poorly enforced financial regulations |
| Imports | NA | 16,830 bbl/day (2007 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | food, construction equipment and materials, petroleum products | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
| Imports - partners | US, Japan (2000) | China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006) |
| Independence | none (commonwealth in political union with the US) | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA | 4.5% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, construction, garments, handicrafts | textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 7.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (1997 est.) | 2.5% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | NA | 120 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Commonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court; Federal District Court | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
| Labor force | 6,006 total indigenous labor force; 2,699 unemployed; 28,717 foreign workers (June 1995) | 5.38 million (2007 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | NA | - |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
| Land use | arable land: 13.04%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 82.61% (2001) |
arable land: 23.53%
permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005) |
| Languages | Philippine languages 24.4%, Chinese 23.4%, Chamorro 22.4%, English 10.8%, other Pacific island languages 9.5%, other 9.6% (2000 census) | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
| Legal system | based on US system, except for customs, wages, immigration laws, and taxation | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| 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 1 November 2003 (next to be held 5 November 2005); House of Representatives - last held 1 November 2003 (next to be held 5 November 2005) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Covenant Party 9, Republican Party 7, Democratic Party 1, independent 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) |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 March 2007 (next to be held by March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FCBE 35, ADD 20, PRD 10, other and independents 18 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.88 years
male: 73.31 years female: 78.61 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 53.44 years
male: 52.28 years female: 54.63 years (2007 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: 34.7% male: 47.9% female: 23.3% (2002 census) |
| Location | Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
| Map references | Oceania | Africa |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
| Military branches | - | Benin Armed Forces (FAB): Army (l'Arme de Terre), Benin Navy (Forces Navales Beninois, FNB), Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2008) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.7% (2006) |
| National holiday | Commonwealth Day, 8 January (1978) | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
| Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
| Natural hazards | active volcanoes on Pagan and Agrihan; typhoons (especially August to November) | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
| Natural resources | arable land, fish | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
| Net migration rate | 8.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Dr. Carlos S. CAMACHO]; Republican Party [NA]; Covenant Party [Benigno R. FITIAL] | Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Benin Renaissance or RB [Rosine SOGLO]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Theophile NATA]; Key Force or FC [Lazare SÈHOUÉTO]; Movement for the People's Alternative or MAP [Olivier CAPO-CHICHI]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Dominique HOUNGNINOU]; Social Democrat Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Union for the Relief or UPR [Issa SALIFOU]; Union for Democracy and National Solidarity or UDS [Sacca LAFIA]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 80,362 (July 2005 est.) | 8,078,314
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 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA | 37.4% (2007 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.61% (2005 est.) | 2.674% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Saipan, Tinian | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 34, shortwave 1 (2007) |
| Railways | - | total: 758 km
narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
| Religions | Christian (Roman Catholic majority, although traditional beliefs and taboos may still be found) | Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.71 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 0.78 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 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: country code - 1-670; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line network is almost saturated with fixed-line teledensity stuck at a meager 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone subscribership is increasing
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections; four mobile-cellular providers international: country code - 229; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 21,000 (2000) | 77,300 (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,000 (2000) | 1.056 million (2006) |
| 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) | 6 (2007) |
| Terrain | southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 1.27 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA | NA% |
| Waterways | - | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) |
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