Solomon Islands (2001) | Nigeria (2004) | |
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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 | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara |
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: 43.4% (male 29,985,427; female 29,637,684)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 37,502,756; female 36,205,442) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 1,944,260; female 1,977,564) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish | cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish |
Airports | 31 (2000 est.) | 70 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
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: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km |
total: 923,768 sq km
land: 910,768 sq km water: 13,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly more than twice the size of California |
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. | Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The president faces the daunting task of rebuilding a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. Despite some irregularities, the April 2003 elections marked the first civilian transfer of power in Nigeria's history. |
Birth rate | 34.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 38.24 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$147 million expenditures: $168 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $8.026 billion
expenditures: $11.09 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Honiara | Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices have now made the move to Abuja |
Climate | tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather | varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north |
Coastline | 5,313 km | 853 km |
Constitution | 7 July 1978 | new constitution adopted May 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands |
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria |
Currency | Solomon Islands dollar (SBD) | naira (NGN) |
Death rate | 4.27 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $152.4 million (1998) | $31.07 billion (2003 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 Howard Franklin JETER
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205 FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353 |
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 Jibril Muhammad AMINU
chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York |
Disputes - international | none | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi Peninsula; the ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, the unresolved Bakasi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River all contribute to the delay in implementation; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Benin; Lake Chad Commission continues to urge signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, which remains the site of armed clashes among local populations and militias |
Economic aid - recipient | $47 million (1999 est.), mainly from Japan, Australia, China, and NZ | IMF $250 million (1998) |
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. | Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management, is undertaking some reforms under the new civilian administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. The government has lacked the political will to implement the market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. During 2003, however, the government deregulated fuel prices and announced the privatization of the country's four oil refineries. GDP growth probably will rise marginally in 2004, led by oil and natural gas exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.9 million kWh (1999) | 14.55 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 20 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 30 million kWh (1999) | 15.67 billion kWh (2001) |
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: Chappal Waddi 2,419 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; much of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying | soil degradation; rapid deforestation; urban air and water pollution; desertification; oil pollution - water, air, and soil; has suffered serious damage from oil spills; loss of arable land; rapid urbanization |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
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% | Nigeria, which is Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% |
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) | nairas per US dollar - 129.222 (2003), 120.578 (2002), 111.231 (2001), 101.697 (2000), 92.3381 (1999) |
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 Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms; election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6% |
Exports | $165 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | timber, fish, palm oil, cocoa, copra | petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber |
Exports - partners | Japan 35.5%, other Asian countries 47.3% (1999) | US 38.3%, India 9.9%, Brazil 6.8%, Spain 6.2%, France 5.6%, Japan 4% (2003) |
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 vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $900 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $114.8 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
50% industry: 3.5% services: 46.5% (1995) |
agriculture: 30.8%
industry: 43.8% services: 25.4% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 7.1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 S, 159 00 E | 10 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | - | the Niger enters the country in the northwest and flows southward through tropical rain forests and swamps to its delta in the Gulf of Guinea |
Heliports | - | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total:
1,360 km paved: 34 km unpaved: 1,326 km (includes about 800 km of private plantation roads) (1996 est.) |
total: 194,394 km
paved: 60,068 km (including 1,194 km of expressways) unpaved: 134,326 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97) |
Illicit drugs | - | a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center; massive corruption and criminal activity, remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime |
Imports | $152 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | plant and equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals, fuels, chemicals | machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals |
Imports - partners | Australia 38.5%, Singapore 15%, Japan 10.6%, NZ 6.2% (1999) | US 15.6%, UK 9.6%, Germany 7.3%, China 7.2%, Italy 4.3% (2003) |
Independence | 7 July 1978 (from UK) | 1 October 1960 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2.3% (2003 est.) |
Industries | fish (tuna), mining, timber | crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 24.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 70.49 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 73.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10% (1999 est.) | 13.8% (2003 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 | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 2,330 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) |
Labor force | 26,842 | 54.36 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 70%, industry 10%, services 20% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 88% other: 9% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 31.29%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 65.75% (2001) |
Languages | Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2% of population
note: 120 indigenous languages |
English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani |
Legal system | English common law | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (only in some northern states), and traditional law |
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 National Assembly consists of Senate (107 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (346 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.6%, ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 73, ANPP 28, AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 9.3%, other 8.8%; seats by party - PDP 213, ANPP 95, AD 31, other 7; note - two constituencies are not reported |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.55 years male: 69.12 years female: 74.1 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 50.49 years
male: 50.35 years female: 50.63 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68% male: 75.7% female: 60.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon |
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
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 45 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 327,808 GRT/608,076 DWT
by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 5, petroleum tanker 30, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: Norway 2, Pakistan 1, Togo 1, United States 1 registered in other countries: 26 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $469.8 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.9% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 32,665,407 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 18,763,229 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 1,452,231 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 7 July (1978) | Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander |
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian |
Natural hazards | typhoons, but they are rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity | periodic droughts; flooding |
Natural resources | fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel | natural gas, petroleum, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 105 km; gas 1,896 km; oil 3,638 km; refined products 3,626 km (2004) |
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] | Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; All Nigeria Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand Alliance or APGA [Chekwas OKORIE]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Audu OGBEH]; Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples Party or UNPP [Saleh JAMBO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Nigerian Labor Congress or NLC [Adams OSHIOMOLE] |
Population | 480,442 (July 2001 est.) | 137,253,133
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 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 60% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.98% (2001 est.) | 2.45% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aola Bay, Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina | Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt, Sapele, Warri |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 3,557 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Anglican 34%, Roman Catholic 19%, Baptist 17%, United (Methodist/Presbyterian) 11%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4% | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% |
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: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: an inadequate system, further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made
domestic: intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19 earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular facilities and the Internet are available international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 8,000 (1997) | 853,100 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 658 (1997) | 3,149,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1997) | 3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002) |
Terrain | mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls | southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | 4.65 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.32 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA (2003 est.) |
Waterways | none | 8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2004) |