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Compare Puerto Rico (2005) - Lesotho (2008)
Compare Puerto Rico (2005) z Lesotho (2008)
| Puerto Rico (2005) | Lesotho (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (commonwealth associated with the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 78 municipalities (municipios, singular - municipio) at the second order; Adjuntas, Aguada, Aguadilla, Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, Anasco, Arecibo, Arroyo, Barceloneta, Barranquitas, Bayamon, Cabo Rojo, Caguas, Camuy, Canovanas, Carolina, Catano, Cayey, Ceiba, Ciales, Cidra, Coamo, Comerio, Corozal, Culebra, Dorado, Fajardo, Florida, Guanica, Guayama, Guayanilla, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Hatillo, Hormigueros, Humacao, Isabela, Jayuya, Juana Diaz, Juncos, Lajas, Lares, Las Marias, Las Piedras, Loiza, Luquillo, Manati, Maricao, Maunabo, Mayaguez, Moca, Morovis, Naguabo, Naranjito, Orocovis, Patillas, Penuelas, Ponce, Quebradillas, Rincon, Rio Grande, Sabana Grande, Salinas, San German, San Juan, San Lorenzo, San Sebastian, Santa Isabel, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Trujillo Alto, Utuado, Vega Alta, Vega Baja, Vieques, Villalba, Yabucoa, Yauco | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 22% (male 441,594/female 421,986)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 1,228,583/female 1,337,066) 65 years and over: 12.4% (male 211,283/female 276,120) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 35.7% (male 382,308/female 377,303)
15-64 years: 59.3% (male 613,979/female 645,818) 65 years and over: 5% (male 42,621/female 63,233) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coffee, pineapples, plantains, bananas, livestock products, chickens | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
| Airports | 30 (2004 est.) | 28 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 13
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2007) |
| Area | total: 9,104 sq km
land: 8,959 sq km water: 145 sq km |
total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island | slightly smaller than Maryland |
| Background | Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following Columbus' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly-elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose to retain commonwealth status. | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. The Basuto National Party ruled for the first two decades. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and was reinstated in 1995. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after seven years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Botswanan military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community. Subsequent constitutional reforms restored relative political stability. Peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002, but the National Assembly elections of February 2007 were hotly contested and aggrieved parties continue to periodically demonstrate their distrust of the results. |
| Birth rate | 13.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 24.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $6.7 billion
expenditures: $9.6 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (FY99/00) |
revenues: $951.4 million
expenditures: $855.4 million (2007 est.) |
| Capital | San Juan | name: Maseru
geographic coordinates: 29 19 S, 27 29 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
| Coastline | 501 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | ratified 3 March 1952, approved by US Congress 3 July 1952, effective 25 July 1952 | 2 April 1993 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
conventional short form: Puerto Rico |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho local long form: Kingdom of Lesotho local short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
| Death rate | 7.86 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 22.49 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | NA | $693 million (31 December 2007 est.) |
| Dependency status | commonwealth associated with the US | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Robert NOLAN
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 22 312666 FAX: [266] 22 310116 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mabasia MOHOBANE
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
| Disputes - international | increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage to Puerto Rico each year looking for work | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | NA (2001) | $68.82 million (2005) |
| Economy - overview | Puerto Rico has one of the most dynamic economies in the Caribbean region. A diverse industrial sector has far surpassed agriculture as the primary locus of economic activity and income. Encouraged by duty-free access to the US and by tax incentives, US firms have invested heavily in Puerto Rico since the 1950s. US minimum wage laws apply. Sugar production has lost out to dairy production and other livestock products as the main source of income in the agricultural sector. Tourism has traditionally been an important source of income, with estimated arrivals of nearly 5 million tourists in 1999. Growth fell off in 2001-03, largely due to the slowdown in the US economy, and has recovered in 2004. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue. However, the government has recently strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa and also generates royalties for Lesotho. Lesotho produces about 90% of its own electrical power needs. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries, as well as a rapidly expanding apparel-assembly sector. The latter has grown significantly mainly due to Lesotho qualifying for the trade benefits contained in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. In July 2007 Lesotho signed a Millennium Challenge Account Compact with the US worth $362.5 million. |
| Electricity - consumption | 20.54 billion kWh (2002) | 338.5 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 13 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 22.09 billion kWh (2002) | 350 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,338 m |
lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
| Environment - current issues | erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
| Ethnic groups | white (mostly Spanish origin) 80.5%, black 8%, Amerindian 0.4%, Asian 0.2%, mixed and other 10.9% | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | maloti per US dollar - 7.25 (2007), 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (since 2 January 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor with the consent of the legislature elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (PPD) elected governor; percent of vote - 48.4% |
chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995 while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none - according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution, that came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to depose the monarch, determine who is next in the line of succession, or who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age |
| Exports | NA | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
| Exports - commodities | chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) |
| Exports - partners | US 90.3%, UK 1.6%, Netherlands 1.4%, Dominican Republic 1.4% (2002 est.) | US 81.9%, Belgium 15%, Canada 1.9% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
| Flag description | five equal horizontal bands of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bears a large, white, five-pointed star in the center; design initially influenced by the US flag, but similar to the Cuban flag, with the colors of the bands and triangle reversed | three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green in the proportions of 3:4:3; the colors represent rain, peace, and prosperity respectively; centered in the white stripe is a black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people; the flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 45% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 15.2%
industry: 45% services: 39.7% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2.7% (2004 est.) | 4.8% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 66 30 W | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
| Geography - note | important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level |
| Highways | total: 25,328 km
paved: 23,665 km (including 426 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,363 km (2004) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% (2002 est.) |
| Imports | NA | 1,400 bbl/day (2004) |
| Imports - commodities | chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products |
| Imports - partners | US 55.0%, Ireland 23.7%, Japan 5.4% (2002 est.) | Hong Kong 33.4%, China 31.2%, Germany 7.7%, India 7.3% (2006) |
| Independence | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 12% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, tourism | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 8.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 79.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 84.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 75.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.5% (2003 est.) | 12% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WToO (associate) | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | 400 sq km (1998 est.) | 30 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appellate Court; Court of First Instance composed of two sections: a Superior Court and a Municipal Court (justices for all these courts appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate) | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting on the advice of the Prime Minister); Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts; customary or traditional court |
| Labor force | 1.3 million (2000) | 838,000 (2000 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 3%, industry 20%, services 77% (2000 est.) | agriculture: 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa
industry and services: 14% (2002 est.) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
| Land use | arable land: 3.95%
permanent crops: 5.52% other: 90.53% (2001) |
arable land: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2005) |
| Languages | Spanish, English | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
| Legal system | based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal system of justice | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Legislative Assembly consists of the Senate (at least 27 seats - currently 29; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (51 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PNP 43.4%, PPD 40.3%, PIP 9.4%; seats by party - PNP 17, PPD 9, PIP 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PNP 46.3%, PPD 43.1%, PIP 9.7%; seats by party - PNP 32, PPD 18, PIP 1 note: Puerto Rico elects, by popular vote, a resident commissioner to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting representative in the US House of Representatives; aside from not voting on the House floor, he enjoys all the rights of a member of Congress; elections last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); results - percent of vote by party - PNP 48.6%; seats by party - PNP 1; Luis FORTUNO elected resident commissioner |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 17 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LCD 61, NIP 21, ABC 17, LWP 10, ACP 4, BNP 3, other 4 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.29 years
male: 74.35 years female: 82.43 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 39.97 years
male: 40.73 years female: 39.18 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.1% male: 93.9% female: 94.4% (2002 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 36,728 GRT/37,048 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 2 (United States 2) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
- |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | the Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs |
| Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; paramilitary National Guard, Police Force | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF): Army and Air Wing |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.6% (2006) |
| National holiday | US Independence Day, 4 July (1776); Puerto Rico Constitution Day, 25 July (1952) | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
| Nationality | noun: Puerto Rican(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Puerto Rican |
noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts; hurricanes | periodic droughts |
| Natural resources | some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil | water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone |
| Net migration rate | -1.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | National Democratic Party [Celeste BENITEZ]; National Republican Party of Puerto Rico [Dr. Tiody FERRE]; New Progressive Party or PNP (pro-US statehood) [Pedro ROSSELLO]; Popular Democratic Party or PPD (pro-commonwealth) [Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA]; Puerto Rican Independence Party or PIP (pro-independence) [Ruben BERRIOS Martinez] | Alliance of Congress Parties or ACP; All Basotho Convention or ABC [Thomas THABANE]; Basotholand African Congress or BAC [Khauhelo RALITAPOLE]; Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Ntsukunyane MPHANYA]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justin Metsing LEKHANYA]; Kopanang Basotho Party or KPB [Pheelo MOSALA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD (the governing party) [Pakalitha MOSISILI]; Lesotho Education Party or LEP [Thabo PITSO]; Lesotho Workers Party or LWP [Macaefa BILLY]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP [Vincent MALEBO]; National Independent Party or NIP [Anthony MANYELI]; New Lesotho Freedom Party or NLFP [Manapo MAJARA]; Popular Front for Democracy or PFD [Lekhetho RAKUOANE]; Sefate Democratic Union or SDU [Bofihla NKUEBE]; Social Democratic Party of SDP [Masitise SELESO] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Armed Forces for National Liberation or FALN; Armed Forces of Popular Resistance; Boricua Popular Army (also known as the Macheteros); Volunteers of the Puerto Rican Revolution | NA |
| Population | 3,916,632 (July 2005 est.) | 2,125,262
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 | 49% (1999) |
| Population growth rate | 0.47% (2005 est.) | 0.144% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Las Mareas, Mayaguez, San Juan | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 72, FM 17, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 96 km
narrow gauge: 96 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
- |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15% | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.013 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.951 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.674 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: modern system integrated with that of the US by high-capacity submarine cable and Intelsat with high-speed data capability
domestic: digital telephone system; cellular telephone service international: country code - 1-787, 939; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; submarine cable to US |
general assessment: rudimentary system consisting of a modest but growing number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a small radiotelephone communication system; mobile-cellular telephone system is expanding
domestic: privatized in 2001, Telecom Lesotho tasked with providing an additional 50,000 fixed-line connections within five years, a target not met; mobile-cellular service is expanding with a subscribership approaching 15 per 100 persons; rural services are scant international: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 1,329,500 (2002) | 48,000 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,211,111 (2001) | 249,800 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 6 (19 relay stations) (2004) | 1 (2000) |
| Terrain | mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 1.91 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.21 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 12% (2002) | 45% (2002) |
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