Samoa (2001) | Swaziland (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 11 districts; A'ana, Aiga-i-le-Tai, Atua, Fa'asaleleaga, Gaga'emauga, Gagaifomauga, Palauli, Satupa'itea, Tuamasaga, Va'a-o-Fonoti, Vaisigano | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
31.88% (male 29,009; female 28,069) 15-64 years: 62.44% (male 70,491; female 41,304) 65 years and over: 5.68% (male 4,739; female 5,446) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 40.7% (male 233,169/female 229,103)
15-64 years: 55.8% (male 303,260/female 330,460) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 16,071/female 24,271) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, bananas, taro, yams | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 18 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
2 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2006) |
Area | total:
2,860 sq km land: 2,850 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | New Zealand occupied the German protectorate of Western Samoa at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It continued to administer the islands as a mandate and then as a trust territory until 1962, when the islands became the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The country dropped the "Western" from its name in 1997. | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection. |
Birth rate | 15.59 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 27.41 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$74.8 million expenditures: $81.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $805.6 million
expenditures: $957.1 million; including capital expenditures of $147 million (2005 est.) |
Capital | Apia | name: Mbabane
geographic coordinates: 26 18 S, 31 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Lobamba (royal and legislative capital) |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (October to March), dry season (May to October) | varies from tropical to near temperate |
Coastline | 403 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1 January 1962 | the first constitution was signed into law in July 2005 and is scheduled to be implemented in January 2006 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Independent State of Samoa conventional short form: Samoa former: Western Samoa |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland local long form: Umbuso weSwatini local short form: eSwatini |
Currency | tala (WST) | - |
Death rate | 6.29 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 29.74 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1998 est.) | $357 million (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Carol MOSELEY BRAUN (Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa, resides in Wellington, New Zealand) embassy: 5th floor, Beach Road, Apia mailing address: P. O. Box 3430, Apia telephone: [685] 21631 FAX: [685] 22030 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Lewis LUCKE
embassy: Central Bank Building, Mahlokahla Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Tuiloma Neroni SLADE chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6196, 6197 FAX: [1] (212) 599-0797 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ephraim Mandla HLOPHE
chancery: 1712 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5002 FAX: [1] (202) 234-8254 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $42.9 million (1995) | $104 million (2001) |
Economy - overview | The economy of Samoa has traditionally been dependent on development aid, family remittances from overseas, and agricultural exports. The country is vulnerable to devastating storms. Agriculture employs two-thirds of the labor force, and furnishes 90% of exports, featuring coconut cream, coconut oil, and copra. The manufacturing sector mainly processes agricultural products. Tourism is an expanding sector, accounting for 15% of GDP; about 85,000 tourists visited the islands in 2000. The Samoan Government has called for deregulation of the financial sector, encouragement of investment, and continued fiscal discipline. Observers point to the flexibility of the labor market as a basic strength for future economic advances. Foreign reserves are in a relatively healthy state, the external debt is stable, and inflation is low. | In this small, landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. The manufacturing sector has diversified since the mid-1980s. Sugar and wood pulp remain important foreign exchange earners. Mining has declined in importance in recent years with only coal and quarry stone mines remaining active. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives about nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends nearly two-thirds of its exports. Customs duties from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. More than one-fourth of the population needed emergency food aid in 2004-05 because of drought, and nearly two-fifths of the adult population has been infected by HIV/AIDS. |
Electricity - consumption | 93 million kWh (1999) | 1.161 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2004) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 821.4 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2004) |
Electricity - production | 100 million kWh (1999) | 392 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
60% hydro: 40% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mauga Silisili 1,857 m |
lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
Environment - current issues | soil erosion | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Samoan 92.6%, Euronesians 7% (persons of European and Polynesian blood), Europeans 0.4% | African 97%, European 3% |
Exchange rates | tala per US dollar - 3.3400 (January 2001), 3.2712 (2000), 3.0120 (1999), 2.9429 (1998), 2.5562 (1997), 2.4618 (1996) | emalangeni per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Chief Susuga MALIETOA Tanumafili II (cochief of state from 1 January 1962 until becoming sole chief of state 5 April 1963) head of government: Prime Minister TUILA'EPA Sailele Malielegaoi (since 24 November 1998); note - TUILA'EPA served as deputy prime minister since 1992; he assumed the prime ministership in November 1998 when former Prime Minister TOFILAU Eti Alesana resigned in poor health; the post of deputy prime minister is currently vacant cabinet: Cabinet consists of 12 members, appointed by the chief of state with the prime minister's advice elections: upon the death of Chief Susuga MALIETOA Tanumafili II, a new chief of state will be elected by the Legislative Assembly to serve a five-year term; prime minister appointed by the chief of state with the approval of the Legislative Assembly |
chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Absolom Themba DLAMINI (since 14 November 2003) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $17 million (f.o.b., 2000) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | coconut oil and cream, copra, fish, beer | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit |
Exports - partners | American Samoa 59%, US 18%, Germany 9%, New Zealand 8% (2000 est.) | South Africa 59.7%, EU 8.8%, US 8.8%, Mozambique 6.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side quadrant bearing five white five-pointed stars representing the Southern Cross constellation | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $571 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 24% services: 61% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 11.9%
industry: 51.5% services: 36.6% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,200 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.8% (2000 est.) | 1.8% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 35 S, 172 20 W | 26 30 S, 31 30 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa |
Highways | total:
835 km paved: 267 km unpaved: 569 km (1983) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 50.2% (1995) |
Imports | $90 million (f.o.b., 2000) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, industrial supplies, foodstuffs | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | New Zealand 37%, Australia 24%, Fiji 14%, US 14% (2000 est.) | South Africa 95.6%, EU 0.9%, Japan 0.9%, Singapore 0.3% (2004) |
Independence | 1 January 1962 (from New Zealand-administered UN trusteeship) | 6 September 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 10% (2000 est.) | 3.7% (FY95/96) |
Industries | food processing, building materials, auto parts | mining (coal, raw asbestos), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel |
Infant mortality rate | 31.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 71.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 75.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 68.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.8% (2000 est.) | 4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch |
Labor force | 90,000 (2000 est.) | 155,700 (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 65%, services 30%, industry 5% (1995 est.) | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 535 km
border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
Land use | arable land:
19% permanent crops: 24% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 47% other: 10% |
arable land: 10.25%
permanent crops: 0.81% other: 88.94% (2005) |
Languages | Samoan (Polynesian), English | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law and local customs; judicial review of legislative acts with respect to fundamental rights of the citizen; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fono (49 seats - 47 elected by Samoans, 2 elected by non-Samoans; only chiefs (matai) may stand for election to the Fono; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 March 2001 (next to be held by March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - HRPP 23, SNDP 13, independents 13 |
bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be held October 2008) election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.5 years male: 66.77 years female: 72.37 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 32.62 years
male: 32.1 years female: 33.17 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1971 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.6% male: 82.6% female: 80.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Military - note | Samoa has no formal defense structure or regular armed forces; informal defense ties exist with NZ, which is required to consider any Samoan request for assistance under the 1962 Treaty of Friendship | - |
Military branches | no regular armed services; Samoa Police Force | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (USDF): Ground Force (includes air wing), Royal Swaziland Police Force (RSPF) (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $41.6 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.4% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day Celebration, 1 June (1962); note - 1 January 1962 is the date of independence from the New Zealand-administered UN trusteeship, 1 June 1962 is the date that independence is celebrated | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Samoan(s) adjective: Samoan |
noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons; active volcanism | drought |
Natural resources | hardwood forests, fish, hydropower | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc |
Net migration rate | -11.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Human Rights Protection Party or HRPP [TUILA'EPA Sailele Malielegaoi, chairman]; Samoa All People's Party or SAPP [Matatumua NAIMOAGA]; Samoan National Development Party or SNDP [TAPUA Tamasese Efi, chairman] (opposition); Samoa National Party [FETU Tiatia, party secretary]; Samoan Progressive Conservative Party [LEOTA Ituau Ale] | political parties are banned by the government under an emergency decree that will be revoked when the new constitution takes effect (January 2006)- the following are considered political associations; Imbokodvo National Movement or INM; Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 179,058 (July 2001 est.) | 1,136,334
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 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 69% (2005) |
Population growth rate | -0.23% (2001 est.) | -0.23% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Apia, Asau, Mulifanua, Salelologa | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 2 plus 4 repeaters, shortwave 3 (2004) |
Radios | 178,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Christian 99.7% (about one-half of population associated with the London Missionary Society; includes Congregational, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Latter-Day Saints, Seventh-Day Adventist) | Zionist 40% (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship), Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.71 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.39 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 8,000 (1997) | 35,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,545 (February 1998) | 200,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (1997) | 12 (includes 7 relay stations) (2004) |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain with volcanic, rocky, rugged mountains in interior | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains |
Total fertility rate | 3.4 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.53 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA%; note - substantial underemployment | 40% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |