Saint Helena (2008) | Cameroon (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* | 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.7% (male 716/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 2,755/female 2,608) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 358/female 415) (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 | coffee, corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, lobster (on Tristan da Cunha); livestock | coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber |
Airports | 1 (2007) | 45 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 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: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 8 (2007) |
Area | total: 413 sq km
land: Saint Helena Island 122 sq km; Ascension Island 90 sq km; Tristan da Cunha island group 201 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 twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than California |
Background | Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory consisting of Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903. Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena and it served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of trans-Atlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War, and it remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic. Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of the islands of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough. Tristan da Cunha is named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506); it was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island. |
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 an ethnic oligarchy headed by President Paul BIYA. |
Birth rate | 11.93 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 35.07 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.09 million
expenditures: $32.16 million note: revenue data reflect locally raised revenues only; the budget deficit is resolved by grant aid from the United Kingdom (FY06/07 est.) |
revenues: $3.611 billion
expenditures: $2.609 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | name: Jamestown
geographic coordinates: 15 56 S, 5 44 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 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 | Saint Helena: tropical marine; mild, tempered by trade winds
Ascension Island: tropical marine; mild, semi-arid Tristan da Cunha: temperate marine; mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north |
Coastline | Saint Helena: 60 km
Ascension Island: NA Tristan da Cunha: 40 km |
402 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1989 | 20 May 1972 approved by referendum, adopted 2 June 1972; revised January 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
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 | 6.63 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.66 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $3.688 billion (2006 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador R. Niels MARQUARDT
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 | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 | none | 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 | $29.56 million obtained in a grant from the United Kingdom (FY06/07) | 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 depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which will amount to about $27 million in FY06/07 or almost 70% of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. | 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 | 7.44 million kWh (2005) | 3.435 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 8 million kWh (2005) | 4.09 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,062 m; Green Mountain on Ascension Island 859 m; Mount Actaeon on Saint Helena Island 818 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako 4,095 m (on Mt. Cameroon) |
Environment - current issues | NA | waterborne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing |
Environment - international 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 | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% | 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 | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.4993 (2007), 0.5434 (2006), 0.5493 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003)
note: the Saint Helenian pound is on par with the British pound |
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Andrew GURR (since 11 November 2007) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, three ex-officio officers, and five elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
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 | 0 bbl/day (2004) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts | crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton |
Exports - partners | Tanzania 37.7%, US 17.4%, Japan 15.2%, UK 8.4%, Nigeria 4.8%, Spain 4.5% (2006) | Spain 21.3%, Italy 15.4%, France 11.6%, South Korea 7.3%, Netherlands 7.2%, US 5.7%, Belgium 4.2% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 44.3%
industry: 15.7% services: 40% (2006 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 3.9% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | Saint Helena: 15 57 S, 5 42 W
Ascension Island: 7 57 S, 14 22 W Tristan da Cunha island group: 37 15 S, 12 30 W |
6 00 N, 12 00 E |
Geography - note | Saint Helena harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns; Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha is the highest island mountain in the South Atlantic and a prominent landmark on the sea lanes around southern Africa | 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 | 64.07 bbl/day (2004) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts | machinery, electrical equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food |
Imports - partners | UK 53.5%, South Africa 14.3%, Spain 10.3%, Tanzania 8.5%, US 4.6% (2006) | France 23.6%, Nigeria 13.2%, China 7.3%, Belgium 6.1%, US 4.6% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 1 January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.2% (1999 est.) |
Industries | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing, philatelic sales | petroleum production and refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair |
Infant mortality rate | total: 17.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.98 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) | 3.2% (1997 est.) | 5.1% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | 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, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, 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 | Magistrate's Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | 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 | 2,486
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
6.542 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 6%
industry: 48% services: 46% (1987 est.) |
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: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2005) |
arable land: 12.54%
permanent crops: 2.52% other: 84.94% (2005) |
Languages | English | 24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) |
Legal system | English common law and statutes, supplemented by local statutes | based on French civil law system, with common law influence; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, three ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 August 2005 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 12 |
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: 78.09 years
male: 75.19 years female: 81.15 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 52.86 years
male: 52.15 years female: 53.59 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.9% male: 77% female: 59.8% (2001 est.) |
Location | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa; Ascension Island lies 700 nm northwest of Saint Helena; Tristan da Cunha lies 2300 nm southwest of Saint Helena | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 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 UK | - |
Military branches | - | Cameroon Armed Forces: Army, Navy (includes naval infantry), Air Force (Armee de l'Air du Cameroun, AAC) (2006) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.3% (2006) |
National holiday | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) | Republic Day (National Day), 20 May (1972) |
Nationality | noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian note: referred to locally as "Saints" |
noun: Cameroonian(s)
adjective: Cameroonian |
Natural hazards | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha, last eruption in 1961 | volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes |
Natural resources | fish, lobster | petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 70 km; liquid petroleum gas 9 km; oil 1,107 km (2006) |
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]; Movement for the Youth of Cameroon or MYC [Dieudonne TINA]; 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 | none | Southern Cameroon National Council [Ayamba Ette OTUN]; Human Rights Defense Group [Albert MUKONG, president] |
Population | 7,543
note: only Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha islands are inhabited (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 | 0.53% (2007 est.) | 2.241% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | Saint Helena: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0
Ascension: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2005) |
AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 987 km
narrow gauge: 987 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic | indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.036 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.056 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.863 male(s)/female total population: 1.031 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 | NA years of age | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic digital network international: country code (Saint Helena) - 290, (Ascension Island) - 247; international direct dialing; satellite voice and data communications; satellite earth stations - 5 (Ascension Island - 4, Saint Helena - 1) |
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 | 2,200 (2002) | 100,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 2.253 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (3 television channels are received via satellite and distributed by UHF) (2005) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | the islands of this group result from volcanic activity associated with the Atlantic Mid-Ocean Ridge
Saint Helena: rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains Ascension: surface covered by lava flows and cinder cones of 44 dormant volcanoes; ground rises to the east Tristan da Cunha: sheer cliffs line the coastline of the nearly circular island; the flanks of the central volcanic peak are deeply dissected; narrow coastal plain lies between The Peak and the coastal cliffs |
diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | 1.55 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 4.49 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Transportation - note | there is no air connection to Saint Helena or Tristan da Cunha; an international airport for Saint Helena is in development for 2010 | - |
Unemployment rate | 14% (1998 est.) | 30% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | navigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2005) |