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Compare Solomon Islands (2001) - Gabon (2007)

Compare Solomon Islands (2001) z Gabon (2007)

 Solomon Islands (2001)Gabon (2007)
 Solomon IslandsGabon
Administrative divisions 7 provinces and 1 town*; Central, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Temotu, Western; note - there may be two new provinces of Choiseul (Lauru) and Rennell/Bellona and the administrative unit of Honiara may have been abolished 9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem
Age structure 0-14 years:
43.79% (male 107,229; female 103,162)

15-64 years:
53.15% (male 129,315; female 126,021)

65 years and over:
3.06% (male 7,190; female 7,525) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 42.1% (male 307,444/female 305,468)


15-64 years: 53.9% (male 391,194/female 393,103)


65 years and over: 4% (male 23,978/female 33,680) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products cocoa, beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber; cattle; okoume (a tropical softwood); fish
Airports 31 (2000 est.) 53 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
2

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
1 (2000 est.)
total: 10


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 7


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
29

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
10

under 914 m:
18 (2000 est.)
total: 43


1,524 to 2,437 m: 7


914 to 1,523 m: 13


under 914 m: 23 (2007)
Area total:
28,450 sq km

land:
27,540 sq km

water:
910 sq km
total: 267,667 sq km


land: 257,667 sq km


water: 10,000 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maryland slightly smaller than Colorado
Background The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on these islands. Self-government was achieved in 1976 and independence two years later. Current issues include government deficits, deforestation, and malaria control. Only two autocratic presidents have ruled Gabon since independence from France in 1960. The current president of Gabon, El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba - one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world - has dominated the country's political scene for almost four decades. President BONGO introduced a nominal multiparty system and a new constitution in the early 1990s. However, allegations of electoral fraud during local elections in 2002-03 and the presidential elections in 2005 have exposed the weaknesses of formal political structures in Gabon. Gabon's political opposition remains weak, divided, and financially dependent on the current regime. Despite political conditions, a small population, abundant natural resources, and considerable foreign support have helped make Gabon one of the more prosperous and stable African countries.
Birth rate 34.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 35.96 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$147 million

expenditures:
$168 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
revenues: $3.027 billion


expenditures: $2.146 billion (2006 est.)
Capital Honiara name: Libreville


geographic coordinates: 0 23 N, 9 27 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather tropical; always hot, humid
Coastline 5,313 km 885 km
Constitution 7 July 1978 adopted 14 March 1991
Country name conventional long form:
none

conventional short form:
Solomon Islands

former:
British Solomon Islands
conventional long form: Gabonese Republic


conventional short form: Gabon


local long form: Republique gabonaise


local short form: Gabon
Currency Solomon Islands dollar (SBD) -
Death rate 4.27 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 12.45 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $152.4 million (1998) $3.849 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the Solomon Islands chief of mission: Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY


embassy: Boulevard du Bord de Mer, Libreville


mailing address: Centre Ville, B. P. 4000, Libreville


telephone: [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, after hours - 74 34 92


FAX: [241] 74 55 07
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires ad interim Jeremiah MANELE

chancery:
800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017

telephone:
[1] (212) 599-6192, 6193

FAX:
[1] (212) 661-8925
chief of mission: Ambassador Jules Marius OGOUEBANDJA


chancery: Suite 200, 2034 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 797-1000


FAX: [1] (202) 332-0668


consulate(s): New York
Disputes - international none UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and lesser islands and to establish a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay
Economic aid - recipient $47 million (1999 est.), mainly from Japan, Australia, China, and NZ $53.87 million (2005)
Economy - overview The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for at least part of their livelihood. Most manufactured goods and petroleum products must be imported. The islands are rich in undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and gold. However, severe ethnic violence, the closing of key business enterprises, and an empty government treasury have led to a continuing economic downslide. Deliveries of crucial fuel supplies (including those for electrical generation) by tankers have become sporadic due to the government's inability to pay and attacks against ships. Telecommunications are threatened by the lack of technical and maintenance staff many of whom have left the country. Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African nations. This has supported a sharp decline in extreme poverty; yet, because of high income inequality, a large proportion of the population remains poor. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now accounts for 50% of GDP. Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. Devaluation of its currency by 50% in January 1994 sparked a one-time inflationary surge, to 35%; the rate dropped to 6% in 1996. The IMF provided a one-year standby arrangement in 1994-95, a three-year Enhanced Financing Facility (EFF) at near commercial rates beginning in late 1995, and stand-by credit of $119 million in October 2000. Those agreements mandated progress in privatization and fiscal discipline. France provided additional financial support in January 1997 after Gabon met IMF targets for mid-1996. In 1997, an IMF mission to Gabon criticized the government for overspending on off-budget items, overborrowing from the central bank, and slipping on its schedule for privatization and administrative reform. The rebound of oil prices in 1999-2000 helped growth, but drops in production hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains. In December 2000, Gabon signed a new agreement with the Paris Club to reschedule its official debt. A follow-up bilateral repayment agreement with the US was signed in December 2001. Gabon signed a 14-month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2004, and received Paris Club debt rescheduling later that year. Short-term progress depends on an upbeat world economy and fiscal and other adjustments in line with IMF policies.
Electricity - consumption 27.9 million kWh (1999) 1.241 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 30 million kWh (1999) 1.52 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m

highest point:
Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mont Iboundji 1,575 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; much of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying deforestation; poaching
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Melanesian 93%, Polynesian 4%, Micronesian 1.5%, European 0.8%, Chinese 0.3%, other 0.4% Bantu tribes, including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Bapounou, Nzebi, Obamba); other Africans and Europeans, 154,000, including 10,700 French and 11,000 persons of dual nationality
Exchange rates Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 5.0968 (November 2000), 5.0864 (2000), 4.8381 (1999), 4.8156 (1998), 3.7169 (1997), 3.5664 (1996) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.89 (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), represented by Governor General Father John LAPLI (since NA 1999)

head of government:
Prime Minister Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE (since 1 July 2000); Assistant Prime Minister Nathaniel WAENA (since 1 July 2000); Deputy Prime Minister Allan KEMAKEZA (since 1 July 2000); note - Prime Minister Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU was forced to resign his position in June 2000 following the armed takeover of the capital by elements supporting the opposition parties; Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE, who had been opposition leader, was then elected prime minister at a sitting of National Parliament on 30 June 2000

cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament

elections:
none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
chief of state: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba (since 2 December 1967)


head of government: Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe NDONG (since 20 January 2006)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in 2012); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba reelected; percent of vote - El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba 79.2%, Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 13.6%, Zacharie MYBOTO 6.6%
Exports $165 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities timber, fish, palm oil, cocoa, copra crude oil 77%, timber, manganese, uranium (2001)
Exports - partners Japan 35.5%, other Asian countries 47.3% (1999) US 27.6%, China 15.9%, France 7.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 5.4%, Thailand 4.3% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue
GDP purchasing power parity - $900 million (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
50%

industry:
3.5%

services:
46.5% (1995)
agriculture: 6%


industry: 58.4%


services: 35.6% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1% (2000 est.) 1.2% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates 8 00 S, 159 00 E 1 00 S, 11 45 E
Geography - note - a small population and oil and mineral reserves have helped Gabon become one of Africa's wealthier countries; in general, these circumstances have allowed the country to maintain and conserve its pristine rain forest and rich biodiversity
Highways total:
1,360 km

paved:
34 km

unpaved:
1,326 km (includes about 800 km of private plantation roads) (1996 est.)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Imports $152 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities plant and equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals, fuels, chemicals machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials
Imports - partners Australia 38.5%, Singapore 15%, Japan 10.6%, NZ 6.2% (1999) France 35.3%, US 7.7%, Netherlands 5.6%, Cameroon 4.5%, Belgium 4.4% (2006)
Independence 7 July 1978 (from UK) 17 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 1.6% (2002 est.)
Industries fish (tuna), mining, timber petroleum extraction and refining; manganese, gold; chemicals, ship repair, food and beverages, textiles, lumbering and plywood, cement
Infant mortality rate 24.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 53.65 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 62.53 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 44.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 10% (1999 est.) 4% (2006 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land NA sq km 70 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Court of Appeal Supreme Court or Cour Supreme consisting of three chambers - Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal; Court of State Security; County Courts
Labor force 26,842 574,000 (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% agriculture: 60%


industry: 15%


services: 25%
Land boundaries 0 km total: 2,551 km


border countries: Cameroon 298 km, Republic of the Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km
Land use arable land:
1%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
1%

forests and woodland:
88%

other:
9% (1993 est.)
arable land: 1.21%


permanent crops: 0.64%


other: 98.15% (2005)
Languages Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2% of population

note:
120 indigenous languages
French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi
Legal system English common law based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

elections:
last held 6 August 1997 (next to be held by August 2001)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - GNUR 21, PAP 7, NAPSI 5, SILP 4, UP 4, independents 6, other 3
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (91 seats; members elected by members of municipal councils and departmental assemblies to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 26 January and 9 February 2003 (next to be held by January 2009); National Assembly - last held 17 and 24 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDG 53, RNB 20, PGP 4, ADERE 3, RDP 1, CLR 1, independents 9; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDG 82, RPG 8, UPG 8, UGDD 4, ADERE 3, CLR 2, PGP-Ndaot 2, PSD 2, independents 4, others 5
Life expectancy at birth total population:
71.55 years

male:
69.12 years

female:
74.1 years (2001 est.)
total population: 53.99 years


male: 52.85 years


female: 55.17 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition:
NA

total population:
NA%

male:
NA%

female:
NA%
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 63.2%


male: 73.7%


female: 53.3% (1995 est.)
Location Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea
Map references Oceania Africa
Maritime claims measured from claimed archipelagic baselines

continental shelf:
200 NM

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine none (2000 est.) registered in other countries: 2 (Cambodia 1, Panama 1) (2007)
Military branches no regular military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP) Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure $NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 3.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 7 July (1978) Independence Day, 17 August (1960)
Nationality noun:
Solomon Islander(s)

adjective:
Solomon Islander
noun: Gabonese (singular and plural)


adjective: Gabonese
Natural hazards typhoons, but they are rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity NA
Natural resources fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -3.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines - gas 272 km; oil 1,354 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders there are two main coalitions - Coalition for National Unity, Reconciliation, and Peace or CNURP and Alliance for Change; the CNURP took power on 30 June 2000, it comprises members of the Liberal Party, People's Alliance Party, and the United Party, as well as a number of independents; the Alliance for Change, represents the former government and now is the opposition; in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions; Group for National Unity and Reconciliation or GNUR [leader NA]; Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; National Action Party of Solomon Islands or NAPSI [Francis SAEMALA]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [George LEPPING]; People's Progressive Party [Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; United Party or UP [leader NA] Circle of Liberal Reformers or CLR [General Jean Boniface ASSELE]; Congress for Democracy and Justice or CDJ [Jules Aristide Bourdes OGOULIGUENDE]; Democratic and Republican Alliance or ADERE [Divungui-di-Ndinge DIDJOB]; Gabonese Democratic Party or PDG (former sole party) [Simplice Nguedet MANZELA]; Gabonese Party for Progress or PGP [Pierre-Louis AGONDJO-OKAWE]; Gabonese Union for Democracy and Development or UGDD [Zacherie MYBOTO]; National Rally of Woodcutters or RNB; National Rally of Woodcutters-Rally for Gabon or RNB-RPG (Bucherons) [Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE]; People's Unity Party or PUP [Louis Gaston MAYILA]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Pierre EMBONI]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pierre Claver MAGANGA-MOUSSAVOU]; Union for Democracy and Social Integration or UDIS; Union of Gabonese Patriots or UPG [Pierre MAMBOUNDOU]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA NA
Population 480,442 (July 2001 est.) 1,454,867


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% NA%
Population growth rate 2.98% (2001 est.) 2.036% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Aola Bay, Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina -
Radio broadcast stations AM 3, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 6, FM 7 (plus 11 repeaters), shortwave 4 (2001)
Radios 57,000 (1997) -
Railways 0 km total: 814 km


standard gauge: 814 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)
Religions Anglican 34%, Roman Catholic 19%, Baptist 17%, United (Methodist/Presbyterian) 11%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4% Christian 55%-75%, animist, Muslim less than 1%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.96 male(s)/female

total population:
1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.006 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.995 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.712 male(s)/female


total population: 0.987 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 21 years of age; universal 21 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
NA

domestic:
NA

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
general assessment: adequate service by African standards and improving with the help of a growing mobile cell network system with three providers; mobile-cellular subscribership exceeded 50 per 100 persons in 2006


domestic: adequate system of cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiotelephone communication stations, and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations


international: country code - 241; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 8,000 (1997) 36,500 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 658 (1997) 764,700 (2006)
Television broadcast stations 0 (1997) 4 (plus 4 repeaters) (2001)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south
Total fertility rate 4.65 children born/woman (2001 est.) 4.71 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 21% (2006 est.)
Waterways none 1,600 km (310 km on Ogooue River) (2007)
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