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Compare Palau (2004) - Benin (2008)

Compare Palau (2004) z Benin (2008)

 Palau (2004)Benin (2008)
 PalauBenin
Administrative divisions 16 states; Aimeliik, Airai, Angaur, Hatohobei, Kayangel, Koror, Melekeok, Ngaraard, Ngarchelong, Ngardmau, Ngatpang, Ngchesar, Ngeremlengui, Ngiwal, Peleliu, Sonsorol 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou
Age structure 0-14 years: 26.6% (male 2,746; female 2,578)


15-64 years: 68.8% (male 7,456; female 6,319)


65 years and over: 4.6% (male 437; female 480) (2004 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, copra, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock
Airports 3 (2003 est.) 5 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


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


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (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: 458 sq km


land: 458 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 112,620 sq km


land: 110,620 sq km


water: 2,000 sq km
Area - comparative slightly more than 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Background After three decades as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific under US administration, this westernmost cluster of the Caroline Islands opted for independence in 1978 rather than join the Federated States of Micronesia. A Compact of Free Association with the US was approved in 1986, but not ratified until 1993. It entered into force the following year, when the islands gained independence. 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 18.69 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $57.7 million


expenditures: $80.8 million, including capital expenditures of $17.1 million (FY98/99 est.)
revenues: $936.9 million


expenditures: $1.226 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Koror; note - a new capital is being built about 20 km northeast of Koror 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; hot and humid; wet season May to November tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline 1,519 km 121 km
Constitution 1 January 1981 adopted by referendum 2 December 1990
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Palau


conventional short form: Palau


local long form: Beluu er a Belau


local short form: Belau


former: Palau 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
Currency US dollar (USD) -
Death rate 6.89 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $0 (FY99/00) $1.2 billion (2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Francis J. RICCIARDONE, US ambassador to the Philippines is accredited to Palau


embassy: Koror (no street address)


mailing address: P. O. Box 6028, Republic of Palau 96940


telephone: [680] 488-2920, 2990


FAX: [680] 488-2911
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 Hersey KYOTA


chancery: 1800 K Street NW, Suite 714, Washington, DC 20006


telephone: [1] (202) 452-6814


FAX: [1] (202) 452-6281


consulate(s): Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands)
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 border delineation disputes being negotiated with Philippines, Indonesia 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 $155.8 million ; note - the Compact of Free Association with the US, entered into after the end of the UN trusteeship on 1 October 1994, provides Palau with up to $700 million in US aid over 15 years in return for furnishing military facilities $374.7 million (2006)
Economy - overview The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence agriculture and fishing. The government is the major employer of the work force, relying heavily on financial assistance from the US. Business and tourist arrivals numbered 50,000 in FY00/01. The population enjoys a per capita income twice that of the Philippines and much of Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development. 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 - 587 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports - 595 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production - 105 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Ngerchelchuus 242 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m
Environment - current issues inadequate facilities for disposal of solid waste; threats to the marine ecosystem from sand and coral dredging, illegal fishing practices, and overfishing inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 Palauan (Micronesian with Malayan and Melanesian admixtures) 70%, Asian (mainly Filipinos, followed by Chinese, Taiwanese, and Vietnamese) 28%, white 2% (2000 est.) 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 Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001) and Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001) and Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Cabinet


elections: president and vice president elected on separate tickets by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008)


election results: Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. reelected president; percent of vote - Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. 64%, Polycarp BASILIUS 33%; Elias Camsek CHIN elected vice president; percent of vote - Elias Camsek CHIN 70%, Sandra PIERANTOZZI 29%
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 $18 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) 0 bbl/day (2007)
Exports - commodities shellfish, tuna, copra, garments cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood
Exports - partners US, Japan, Singapore (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 light blue with a large yellow disk (representing the moon) shifted slightly to the hoist side two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side
GDP purchasing power parity - $174 million


note: GDP estimate includes US subsidy (2001 est.)
-
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 - $9,000 (2001 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1% (2001 est.) 4.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 7 30 N, 134 30 E 9 30 N, 2 15 E
Geography - note westernmost archipelago in the Caroline chain, consists of six island groups totaling more than 300 islands; includes World War II battleground of Beliliou (Peleliu) and world-famous rock islands sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands
Highways total: 61 km


paved: 36 km


unpaved: 25 km
-
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 $99 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) 16,830 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, fuels, metals; foodstuffs foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners US, Guam, Japan, Singapore, Korea (2000) China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006)
Independence 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) 1 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate NA 4.5% (2007 est.)
Industries tourism, craft items (from shell, wood, pearls), construction, garment making textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement
Infant mortality rate total: 15.3 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 17.07 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 13.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 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) 3.4% (2000 est.) 2.5% (2007 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AsDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IOC, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO 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 sq km 120 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; National Court; Court of Common Pleas Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
Labor force 9,845 (2000) 5.38 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 20%, industry NA, services NA (1990) -
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: 8.7%


permanent crops: 4.35%


other: 86.95% (2001)
arable land: 23.53%


permanent crops: 2.37%


other: 74.1% (2005)
Languages English and Palauan official in all states except Sonsoral (Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official) French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)
Legal system based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament or Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) consists of the Senate (9 seats; members elected by popular vote on a population basis to serve four-year terms) and the House of Delegates (16 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Delegates - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008)


election results: Senate - percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (four new members elected); House of Delegates - percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 16 (one new member elected)
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: 69.82 years


male: 66.67 years


female: 73.15 years (2004 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: 92%


male: 93%


female: 90% (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, group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, southeast of the Philippines Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo
Map references Oceania Africa
Maritime claims territorial sea: 3 nm


exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm


extended fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine none -
Military - note defense is the responsibility of the US; under a Compact of Free Association between Palau and the US, the US military is granted access to the islands for 50 years -
Military branches no regular military forces; Police Force 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 - dollar figure NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 1.7% (2006)
National holiday Constitution Day, 9 July (1979) National Day, 1 August (1960)
Nationality noun: Palauan(s)


adjective: Palauan
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)


adjective: Beninese
Natural hazards typhoons (June to December) hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March
Natural resources forests, minerals (especially gold), marine products, deep-seabed minerals small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber
Net migration rate 2.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders none 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 20,016 (July 2004 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 1.46% (2004 est.) 2.674% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Koror -
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2002) AM 1, FM 34, shortwave 1 (2007)
Railways - total: 758 km


narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Religions Christian (Roman Catholics 49%, Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Assembly of God, the Liebenzell Mission, and Latter-Day Saints), Modekngei religion (one-third of the population observes this religion, which is indigenous to Palau) 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: 1.07 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.18 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female


total population: 1.14 male(s)/female (2004 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 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 680; satellite earth station - 1 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 6,700 (2002) 77,300 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1,000 (2002) 1.056 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 1 (cable) (2005) 6 (2007)
Terrain varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains
Total fertility rate 2.46 children born/woman (2004 est.) 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 2.3% (2000 est.) NA%
Waterways - 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)
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