Palau (2008) | Cameroon (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 16 states; Aimeliik, Airai, Angaur, Hatohobei, Kayangel, Koror, Melekeok, Ngaraard, Ngarchelong, Ngardmau, Ngatpang, Ngchesar, Ngeremlengui, Ngiwal, Peleliu, Sonsorol | 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26% (male 2,796/female 2,633)
15-64 years: 69.2% (male 7,767/female 6,665) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 465/female 516) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.3% (male 3,763,332/female 3,695,053)
15-64 years: 55.5% (male 5,029,658/female 4,994,786) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 266,616/female 310,937) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, copra, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; fish | coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber |
Airports | 3 (2007) | 45 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 8 (2007) |
Area | total: 458 sq km
land: 458 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 475,440 sq km
land: 469,440 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than California |
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. | The former French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon merged in 1961 to form the present country. Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability, which has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, and railways, as well as a petroleum industry. Despite a slow movement toward democratic reform, political power remains firmly in the hands of President Paul BIYA. |
Birth rate | 17.7 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 35.07 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $72.07 million
expenditures: $72.43 million (FY04/05 est.) |
revenues: $4.14 billion
expenditures: $3.3 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | name: Melekeok
geographic coordinates: 7 29 N, 134 38 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Yaounde
geographic coordinates: 3 52 N, 11 31 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November | varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north |
Coastline | 1,519 km | 402 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1981 | 20 May 1972 approved by referendum, adopted 2 June 1972; revised January 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Palau
conventional short form: Palau local long form: Beluu er a Belau local short form: Belau former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Palau District |
conventional long form: Republic of Cameroon
conventional short form: Cameroon local long form: Republique du Cameroun/Republic of Cameroon local short form: Cameroun/Cameroon former: French Cameroon, British Cameroon, Federal Republic of Cameroon, United Republic of Cameroon |
Death rate | 6.77 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.66 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 (FY99/00) | $2.449 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Charge d'Affaires Mark BEZNER
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 Janet E. GARVEY
embassy: Avenue Rosa Parks, Yaounde mailing address: P. O. Box 817, Yaounde; pouch: American Embassy, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 2220 15 00; Consular: [237] 2220 16 03 FAX: [237] 2220 16 00 Ext. 4531; Consular FAX: [237] 2220 17 52 branch office(s): Douala |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Hersey KYOTA
chancery: 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 452-6814 FAX: [1] (202) 452-6281 consulate(s) general: Honolulu consulate(s): Tamuning (Guam) |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jerome MENDOUGA
chancery: 2349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-8790 FAX: [1] (202) 387-3826 |
Disputes - international | maritime delineation negotiations continue with Philippines, Indonesia | Joint Border Commission with Nigeria reviewed 2002 ICJ ruling on the entire boundary and bilaterally resolved differences, including June 2006 Greentree Agreement that immediately cedes sovereignty of the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon with a phase-out of Nigerian control within two years while resolving patriation issues; implementation of the ICJ ruling on the Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea is pending due to imprecisely defined coordinates and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty, which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries |
Economic aid - recipient | $23.46 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 (2005) | $413.8 million in January 2001, the Paris Club agreed to reduce Cameroon's debt of $1.3 billion by $900 million; debt relief now totals $1.26 billion (2005) |
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 63,000 in 2003. The population enjoys a per capita income roughly 50% higher than 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. | Because of its modest oil resources and favorable agricultural conditions, Cameroon has one of the best-endowed primary commodity economies in sub-Saharan Africa. Still, it faces many of the serious problems facing other underdeveloped countries, such as a top-heavy civil service and a generally unfavorable climate for business enterprise. Since 1990, the government has embarked on various IMF and World Bank programs designed to spur business investment, increase efficiency in agriculture, improve trade, and recapitalize the nation's banks. In June 2000, the government completed an IMF-sponsored, three-year structural adjustment program; however, the IMF is pressing for more reforms, including increased budget transparency, privatization, and poverty reduction programs. International oil and cocoa prices have a significant impact on the economy. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 3.435 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | - | 4.09 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Ngerchelchuus 242 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako 4,095 m (on Mt. Cameroon) |
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 | waterborne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Palauan (Micronesian with Malayan and Melanesian admixtures) 69.9%, Filipino 15.3%, Chinese 4.9%, other Asian 2.4%, white 1.9%, Carolinian 1.4%, other Micronesian 1.1%, other or unspecified 3.2% (2000 census) | Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwestern Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) 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); 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); Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005) cabinet: NA elections: president and vice president elected on separate tickets by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in 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 Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982)
head of government: Prime Minister Ephraim INONI (since 8 December 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from proposals submitted by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held by October 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Paul BIYA reelected; percent of vote - Paul BIYA 70.9%, John FRU NDI 17.4%, Adamou Ndam NJOYA 4.5%, Garga Haman ADJI 3.7% |
Exports | $5.882 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) | 107,400 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | shellfish, tuna, copra, garments | crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton |
Exports - partners | US, Japan, Singapore (2006) | Spain 21.4%, Italy 15.4%, France 11.6%, South Korea 7.3%, Netherlands 7.2%, US 5.7%, Belgium 4.2% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | light blue with a large yellow disk (representing the moon) shifted slightly to the hoist side | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band
note: uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.2%
industry: 12% services: 81.8% (2003) |
agriculture: 44.3%
industry: 15.9% services: 39.8% (2007 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2005 est.) | 3.2% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 7 30 N, 134 30 E | 6 00 N, 12 00 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 | sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.3%
highest 10%: 35.4% (2001) |
Imports | $107.3 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) | 63,710 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, metals; foodstuffs | machinery, electrical equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food |
Imports - partners | US, Singapore, Japan, South Korea (2006) | France 23.6%, Nigeria 13.2%, China 7.2%, Belgium 6.1%, US 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | 1 January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3.5% (2007 est.) |
Industries | tourism, craft items (from shell, wood, pearls), construction, garment making | petroleum production and refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair |
Infant mortality rate | total: 14.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 65.84 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 70.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 60.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2005 est.) | 2% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, ADB, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IOC, IPU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, C, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 260 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Common Pleas; Land Court | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); High Court of Justice (consists of nine judges and six substitute judges, elected by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 9,777 (2005) | 6.68 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 20%
industry: NA% services: NA% (1990) |
agriculture: 70%
industry: 13% services: 17% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,591 km
border countries: Central African Republic 797 km, Chad 1,094 km, Republic of the Congo 523 km, Equatorial Guinea 189 km, Gabon 298 km, Nigeria 1,690 km |
Land use | arable land: 8.7%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 86.95% (2005) |
arable land: 12.54%
permanent crops: 2.52% other: 84.94% (2005) |
Languages | Palauan 64.7% official in all islands except Sonsoral (Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official), Filipino 13.5%, English 9.4%, Chinese 5.7%, Carolinian 1.5%, Japanese 1.5%, other Asian 2.3%, other languages 1.5% (2000 census) | 24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) |
Legal system | based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | based on French civil law system, with common law influence; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress 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 in November 2008); House of Delegates - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 9; House of Delegates - percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 16 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - the president can either lengthen or shorten the term of the legislature
elections: last held 22 July 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RDCP 140, SDF 14, UDC 4, UNDP 4, MP 1, vacant 17; note - vacant seats will be determined in a yet to be scheduled by-election after the Supreme Court nullified results in five districts note: the constitution calls for an upper chamber for the legislature, to be called a Senate, but it has yet to be established |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.71 years
male: 67.54 years female: 74.06 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 52.86 years
male: 52.15 years female: 53.59 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: 67.9% male: 77% female: 59.8% (2001 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, southeast of the Philippines | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 38,613 GRT/68,820 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (France 1) (2007) |
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, but no military forces are stationed there (2005) | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Palau National Police (2008) | Cameroon Armed Forces: Army, Navy (includes naval infantry), Air Force (Armee de l'Air du Cameroun, AAC) (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 1.3% (2006) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 9 July (1979) | Republic Day (National Day), 20 May (1972) |
Nationality | noun: Palauan(s)
adjective: Palauan |
noun: Cameroonian(s)
adjective: Cameroonian |
Natural hazards | typhoons (June to December) | volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes |
Natural resources | forests, minerals (especially gold), marine products, deep-seabed minerals | petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 27 km; liquid petroleum gas 5 km; oil 1,110 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Cameroonian Democratic Union or UDC [Adamou Ndam NJOYA]; Cameroon People's Democratic Movement or RDPC [Paul BIYA]; Movement for the Defense of the Republic or MDR [Dakole DAISSALA]; Movement for the Liberation and Development of Cameroon or MLDC [Marcel YONDO]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Maigari BELLO BOUBA]; Progressive Movement or MP; Social Democratic Front or SDF [John FRU NDI]; Union of Peoples of Cameroon or UPC [Augustin Frederic KODOCK] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Southern Cameroon National Council [Ayamba Ette OTUN]; Human Rights Defense Group [Albert MUKONG, president] |
Population | 20,842 (July 2007 est.) | 18,060,382
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% | 48% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.233% (2007 est.) | 2.241% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 987 km
narrow gauge: 987 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 41.6%, Protestant 23.3%, Modekngei 8.8% (indigenous to Palau), Seventh-Day Adventist 5.3%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, Latter-Day Saints 0.6%, other 3.1%, unspecified or none 16.4% (2000 census) | indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.062 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.165 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.901 male(s)/female total population: 1.124 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.007 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.857 male(s)/female total population: 1.007 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 680; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: fixed-line connections stand at less than 1 per 100 persons; equipment is old and outdated, and connections with many parts of the country are unreliable; mobile-cellular usage, in part a reflection of the poor condition and general inadequacy of the fixed-line network, has been increasing steadily and currently stands at 14 per 100 persons
domestic: cable, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter international: country code - 237; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 6,700 (2002) | 100,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,000 (2002) | 2.253 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (cable) (2005) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs | diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.46 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 4.49 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.2% (2005 est.) | 30% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | navigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2005) |