Puerto Rico (2008) | Bahamas, The (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status); 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 | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21% (male 422,635/female 403,887)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 1,247,314/female 1,352,139) 65 years and over: 13.1% (male 223,508/female 294,776) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 29% (male 43,964; female 43,250)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 95,508; female 98,859) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 7,948; female 11,000) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coffee, pineapples, plantains, bananas; livestock products, chickens | citrus, vegetables; poultry |
Airports | 29 (2007) | 67 (2001) |
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 (2007) |
total: 30
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 12
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 10 (2007) |
total: 34 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 23 (2002) |
Area | total: 13,790 sq km
land: 8,870 sq km water: 4,921 sq km |
total: 13,940 sq km
land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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 not to alter the existing political status. | Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. |
Birth rate | 12.79 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.69 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $6.7 billion
expenditures: $9.6 billion (FY99/00) |
revenues: $918.5 million
expenditures: $956.5 million, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY99/00) |
Capital | name: San Juan
geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 66 07 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Nassau |
Climate | tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream |
Coastline | 501 km | 3,542 km |
Constitution | ratified 3 March 1952; approved by US Congress 3 July 1952; effective 25 July 1952 | 10 July 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
conventional short form: Puerto Rico |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
conventional short form: The Bahamas |
Currency | - | Bahamian dollar (BSD) |
Death rate | 7.78 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 7.49 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $381.9 million (2000) |
Dependency status | unincorporated, organized territory of the US with commonwealth status; policy relations between Puerto Rico and the US conducted under the jurisdiction of the Office of the President | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) | chief of mission: Ambassador J. Richard BLANKENSHIP
embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; stateside address: American Embassy Nassau, P. O. Box 599009, Miami, FL 33159-9009; pouch address: Nassau, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) | chief of mission: Ambassador Joshua SEARS
chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
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 | $9.8 million (1995) |
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 2004. Growth fell off in 2001-03, largely due to the slowdown in the US economy, recovered in 2004-05, but declined again in 2006-07. | The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs almost half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences have led to solid GDP growth in recent years. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of the majority of tourist visitors. |
Electricity - consumption | 23.21 billion kWh (2005) | 1.432 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 24.96 billion kWh (2005) | 1.54 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,339 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | white (mostly Spanish origin) 80.5%, black 8%, Amerindian 0.4%, Asian 0.2%, mixed and other 10.9% | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate pegged to the dollar) |
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 Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (since 2 January 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor with the consent of the legislature elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as Puerto Rico, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor elected by popular vote for a four-year term (no term limits); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA elected governor; percent of vote - 48.4% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
Exports | 10,580 bbl/day (2004) | $535.8 million (2000) |
Exports - commodities | chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment | fish and crawfish; rum, salt, chemicals; fruit and vegetables (1999) |
Exports - partners | US 90.3%, UK 1.6%, Netherlands 1.4%, Dominican Republic 1.4% (2006) | US 28.2%, France 16.5%, Germany 14.1%, UK 12.4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
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 equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 45% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 7% services: 90% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $16,800 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.2% (2007 est.) | 3.5% (2001) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 66 30 W | 24 15 N, 76 00 W |
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 | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 2,693 km
paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center |
Imports | 230,100 bbl/day (2004) | $1.88 billion (2000) |
Imports - commodities | chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals (1999) |
Imports - partners | US 55.0%, Ireland 23.7%, Japan 5.4% (2006) | US 31.6%, South Korea 18.2%, Italy 17.4%, Japan 5.8% (2000) |
Independence | none (territory of the US with commonwealth status) | 10 July 1973 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, tourism | tourism, banking, cement, oil refining and transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.81 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.86 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
17.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.5% (2003 est.) | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ITUC, UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WFTU | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 400 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
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) | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts |
Labor force | 1.3 million (2000) | 156,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 3%
industry: 20% services: 77% (2000 est.) |
tourism 40%, other services 50%, industry 5%, agriculture 5% (1995 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.69%
permanent crops: 5.59% other: 90.72% (2005) |
arable land: 0.6%
permanent crops: 0.4% other: 99% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, English | English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants) |
Legal system | based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal system of justice | based on English common law |
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 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 in 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 in November 2008); results - percent of vote by party - PNP 48.6%, other 51.4%; seats by party - PNP 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.54 years
male: 74.6 years female: 82.67 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 69.87 years
male: 66.32 years female: 73.49 years (2002 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: 98.2% male: 98.5% female: 98% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 77,177 GRT/50,138 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 3 (US 3) registered in other countries: 1 (St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007) |
total: 1,076 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 31,309,187 GRT/45,859,485 DWT
ships by type: bulk 159, cargo 246, chemical tanker 41, combination bulk 13, combination ore/oil 22, container 80, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 8, passenger 88, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 178, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 120, roll on/roll off 49, short-sea passenger 16, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 22 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Angola 1, Argentina 1, Australia 4, Belgium 18, Bermuda 1, Canada 5, Chile 1, China 3, Croatia 2, Cuba 3, Cyprus 2, Denmark 27, Ecuador 1, Estonia 2, Finland 9, France 15, Germany 26, Greece 173, Hong Kong 6, India 2, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 3, Italy 9, Jamaica 1, Japan 32, Kenya 3, Malaysia 10, Malta 2, Monaco 67, Netherlands 32, New Zealand 2, Norway 237, Panama 2, Philippines 3, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 9, Singapore 13, Slovenia 1, South Korea 2, Spain 7, Sweden 12, Switzerland 8, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 2, Turkey 2, Ukraine 2, United Arab Emirates 10, United Kingdom 107, United States 159, Uruguay 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; paramilitary National Guard, Police Force | Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Coast Guard only), Royal Bahamas Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $20 million (FY95/96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.7% (FY99) |
National holiday | US Independence Day, 4 July (1776); Puerto Rico Constitution Day, 25 July (1952) | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Puerto Rican(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Puerto Rican |
noun: Bahamian(s)
adjective: Bahamian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; hurricanes | hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage |
Natural resources | some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | -1.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Democratic Party [Roberto PRATS]; National Republican Party of Puerto Rico [Dr. Tiody FERRE]; New Progressive Party or PNP [Pedro ROSSELLO] (pro-US statehood); Popular Democratic Party or PPD [Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA] (pro-commonwealth); Puerto Rican Independence Party or PIP [Ruben BERRIOS Martinez] (pro-independence) | Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Boricua Popular Army or EPB (a revolutionary group also known as Los Macheteros); note - the following radical groups are considered dormant by Federal law enforcement: Armed Forces for National Liberation or FALN, Armed Forces of Popular Resistance, Volunteers of the Puerto Rican Revolution | NA |
Population | 3,944,259 (July 2007 est.) | 300,529
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 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.393% (2007 est.) | 0.86% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Freeport, Matthew Town, Nassau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 74, FM 53, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 215,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 96 km
narrow gauge: 96 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15% | Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.046 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.922 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.758 male(s)/female total population: 0.923 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 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; submarine cables provide connectivity to the US, Caribbean, Central and South America; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat |
general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.038 million (2005) | 96,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3.354 million (2005) | 6,152 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 32 (2006) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.77 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.28 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12% (2002) | 6.9% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |