Northern Mariana Islands (2005) | Colombia (2002) | |
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 | 32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, Distrito Capital de Bogota*, Bolivar, Boyaca, Caldas, Caqueta, Casanare, Cauca, Cesar, Choco, Cordoba, Cundinamarca, Guainia, Guaviare, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Narino, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Quindio, Risaralda, San Andres y Providencia, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes, Vichada |
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: 31.6% (male 6,552,961; female 6,399,666)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 12,694,293; female 13,375,425) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 886,921; female 1,098,961) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, fruits, vegetables; cattle | coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp |
Airports | 5 (2004 est.) | 1,066 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 96
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 36 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 954
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 914 to 1,523 m: 315 under 914 m: 587 (2002) |
Area | total: 477 sq km
land: 477 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian |
total: 1,138,910 sq km
land: 1,038,700 sq km water: 100,210 sq km note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, Serrana Bank, and Serranilla Bank |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than three times the size of Montana |
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. | Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and Venezuela). A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian Government escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds from the drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence, the movement lacks the military strength or popular support necessary to overthrow the government. An anti-insurgent army of paramilitaries has grown to be several thousand strong in recent years, challenging the insurgents for control of territory and illicit industries such as the drug trade and the government's ability to exert its dominion over rural areas. While Bogota continues to try to negotiate a settlement, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. |
Birth rate | 19.51 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 21.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $193 million
expenditures: $223 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY01/02 est.) |
revenues: $24 billion
expenditures: $25.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Saipan | Bogota |
Climate | tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October | tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands |
Coastline | 1,482 km | 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) |
Constitution | Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978; Covenant Agreement effective 4 November 1986 | 5 July 1991 |
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 Colombia
conventional short form: Colombia local long form: Republica de Colombia local short form: Colombia |
Currency | - | Colombian peso (COP) |
Death rate | 2.3 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.66 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $39 billion (2001 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 Anne W. PATTERSON
embassy: Calle 22D-BIS, numbers 47-51, Apartado Aereo 3831 mailing address: Carrera 45 #22D-45, Bogota, D.C., APO AA 34038 telephone: [57] (1) 315-0811 FAX: [57] (1) 315-2197 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Alberto MORENO Mejia
chancery: 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-8338 FAX: [1] (202) 232-8643 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Washington, DC consulate(s): Atlanta |
Disputes - international | none | Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; maritime boundary dispute with Venezuela in the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian drug activities penetrate Peruvian border area |
Economic aid - recipient | extensive funding from US | $NA |
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. | Colombia's economy suffered from weak domestic demand, austere government budgets, and a difficult security situation. A new president takes office in 2002 and will face economic challenges ranging from pension reform to reduction of unemployment. Two of Colombia's leading exports, oil and coffee, face an uncertain future; new exploration is needed to offset declining oil production, while coffee harvests and prices are depressed. Problems in public security are a concern for Colombian business leaders, who are calling for progress in the government's peace negotiations with insurgent groups. Colombia is looking for continued support from the international community to boost economic and peace prospects. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 40.348 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh | 37 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh | 77 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 43.342 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 26%
hydro: 73% nuclear: 0% other: 1% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Agrihan 965 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation |
Environment - current issues | contamination of groundwater on Saipan may contribute to disease; clean-up of landfill; protection of endangered species conflicts with development | deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Asian 56.3%, Pacific islander 36.3%, Caucasian 1.8%, other 0.8%, mixed 4.8% (2000 census) | mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,275.89 (January 2002), 2,299.63 (2001), 2,087.90 (2000), 1,756.23 (1999), 1,426.04 (1998), 1,140.96 (1997) |
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 Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet consists of a coalition of the two dominant parties - the PL and PSC - and independents elections: president and vice president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006) election results: President Alvaro URIBE Velez received 53% of the vote; Vice President Francisco SANTOS was elected on the same ticket |
Exports | NA | $12.3 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | garments | petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers |
Exports - partners | US (2000) | US 43%, Andean Community of Nations 22%, EU 14%, (2001 est.) |
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 | three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and red; similar to the flag of Ecuador, which is longer and bears the Ecuadorian coat of arms superimposed in the center |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $255 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 19%
industry: 26% services: 55% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $12,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 12 N, 145 45 E | 4 00 N, 72 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean | only South American country with coastlines on both North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 362 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1991) |
total: 110,000 km
paved: 26,000 km unpaved: 84,000 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1999) (1999) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2001 was 169,800 hectares, a 25% increase over 2000); potential production of opium between 2000 and 2001 increased by 33% to 40 metric tons; potential production of heroin increased to 4.3 metric tons; the world's largest processor of coca derivatives into cocaine; supplier of about 90% of the cocaine to the US market and the great majority of cocaine to other international drug markets; important supplier of heroin to the US market; active aerial eradication program; a significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Columbia through the black market peso exchange |
Imports | NA | $12.7 billion c.i.f. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food, construction equipment and materials, petroleum products | industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity |
Imports - partners | US, Japan (2000) | US 35%, EU 16%, Andean Community of Nations 15%, Japan 5% (2001 est.) |
Independence | none (commonwealth in political union with the US) | 20 July 1810 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 4% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, construction, garments, handicrafts | textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds |
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.) |
23.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (1997 est.) | 7.6% (2001) (2001) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau) | BCIE, CAN, Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 18 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 8,500 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Commonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court; Federal District Court | four, coequal, supreme judicial organs; Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justical (highest court of criminal law; judges are selected from the nominees of the Higher Council of Justice for eight-year terms); Council of State (highest court of administrative law, judges are selected from the nominees of the Higher Council of Justice for eight-year terms); Constitutional Court (guards integrity and supremacy of the constitution, rules on constitutionality of laws, amendments to the constitution, and international treaties); Higher Council of Justice (administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; members of the disciplinary chamber resolve jurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members are elected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms) |
Labor force | 6,006 total indigenous labor force; 2,699 unemployed; 28,717 foreign workers (June 1995) | 18.3 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | services 46%, agriculture 30%, industry 24% (1990) (1990) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 6,004 km
border countries: Brazil 1,643 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km, Peru 1,496 km (est.), Venezuela 2,050 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.04%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 82.61% (2001) |
arable land: 1.9%
permanent crops: 1.96% other: 96.14% (1998 est.) |
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) | Spanish |
Legal system | based on US system, except for customs, wages, immigration laws, and taxation | based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US procedures was enacted in 1992-93; judicial review of executive and legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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) |
bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Senate or Senado (102 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006); House of Representatives - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PL 28, PSC 13, independents and smaller parties (many aligned with conservatives) 61; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 54, PSC 21, independents and other parties 91 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.88 years
male: 73.31 years female: 78.61 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 70.85 years
male: 67 years female: 74.83 years (2002 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: 91.3% male: 91.2% female: 91.4% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama |
Map references | Oceania | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 32,438 GRT/43,126 DWT
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 3, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, including Marines and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana), National Police (Policia Nacional) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $3.3 billion (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.4% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 10,946,932 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 7,308,703 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 379,295 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Commonwealth Day, 8 January (1978) | Independence Day, 20 July (1810) |
Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun: Colombian(s)
adjective: Colombian |
Natural hazards | active volcanoes on Pagan and Agrihan; typhoons (especially August to November) | highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | arable land, fish | petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 8.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -0.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 3,585 km; petroleum products 1,350 km; natural gas 830 km; natural gas liquids 125 km |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Dr. Carlos S. CAMACHO]; Republican Party [NA]; Covenant Party [Benigno R. FITIAL] | Conservative Party or PSC [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Liberal Party or PL [Horatio SERPA Uribe]; Patriotic Union or UP is a legal political party formed by Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and Colombian Communist Party or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; 19 of April Movement or M-19 [Antonio NAVARRO Wolff]
note: Colombia has about 60 formally recognized political parties, most of which do not have a presence in either house of Congress |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and National Liberation Army or ELN; largest anti-insurgent paramilitary group is United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC |
Population | 80,362 (July 2005 est.) | 41,008,227 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 55% (2001) (2001) |
Population growth rate | 2.61% (2005 est.) | 1.6% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Saipan, Tinian | Bahia de Portete, Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Leticia, Puerto Bolivar, San Andres, Santa Marta, Tumaco, Turbo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) |
Radios | - | 21 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 3,304 km
standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge (connects Cerrejon coal mines to maritime port at Bahia de Portete) narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (major sections not in use) (2000 est.) |
Religions | Christian (Roman Catholic majority, although traditional beliefs and taboos may still be found) | Roman Catholic 90% |
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: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 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: modern system in many respects
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system; domestic satellite system with 41 earth stations; fiber-optic network linking 50 cities international: satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers; 8 submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 21,000 (2000) | 5,433,565 (December 1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,000 (2000) | 1,800,229 (December 1998) |
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) | 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997) |
Terrain | southern islands are limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic | flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.27 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.64 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 17% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | 18,140 km (navigable by river boats) (April 1996) |