Swaziland (2001) | Mauritius (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni | 9 districts and 3 dependencies*; Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals*, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues*, Savanne |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
45.53% (male 250,327; female 252,479) 15-64 years: 51.88% (male 276,186; female 296,728) 65 years and over: 2.59% (male 11,687; female 16,936) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.4% (male 153,810; female 150,464)
15-64 years: 68.3% (male 409,028; female 411,070) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 30,170; female 45,664) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep | sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish |
Airports | 18 (2000 est.) | 5 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
17,363 sq km land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 2,040 sq km
land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s have pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy. | Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community. |
Birth rate | 40.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.34 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$400 million expenditures: $450 million, including capital expenditures of $115 million (FY96/97) |
revenues: $1.1 billion
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital | Port Louis |
Climate | varies from tropical to near temperate | tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 177 km |
Constitution | none; constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973; a new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people; since then a few more outlines for a constitution have been compiled under the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), but so far none have been accepted | 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Swaziland conventional short form: Swaziland |
conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius
conventional short form: Mauritius |
Currency | lilangeni (SZL) | Mauritian rupee (MUR) |
Death rate | 21.84 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $281 million (2000 est.) | $2.3 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Gregory L. JOHNSON embassy: Central Bank Building, Warner Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
chief of mission: Ambassador John PRICE
embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mary Madzandza KANYA chancery: 3400 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 362-6683 FAX: [1] (202) 244-8059 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH
chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983 |
Disputes - international | Swaziland has asked South Africa to open negotiations on reincorporating some nearby South African territories that are populated by ethnic Swazis or that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom | Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation in 2001; claims French-administered Tromelin Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $55 million (1995) | $42 million (1997) (1997) |
Economy - overview | In this small landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 60% of the population. Manufacturing features a number of agroprocessing factories. Mining has declined in importance in recent years: diamond mines have shut down because of the depletion of easily accessible reserves; high-grade iron ore deposits were depleted by 1978; and health concerns have cut world demand for asbestos. Exports of soft drink concentrate, sugar, and wood pulp are the main earners of hard currency. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives four-fifths of its imports and to which it sends two-thirds of its exports. Remittances from the Southern African Customs Union and Swazi workers in South African mines 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. Prospects for 2001 are strengthened by government millennium projects for a new convention center, additional hotels, an amusement park, a new airport, and stepped-up roadbuilding and factory construction plans. | Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on foreign investment. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector and responsible fiscal management, was well-poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). |
Electricity - consumption | 198 million kWh (1999) | 1.195 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 852 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 701 million kWh
note: supplied by South Africa (1999) |
0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 375 million kWh (1999) | 1.285 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
53.33% hydro: 46.67% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 91%
hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Great Usutu River 21 m highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Piton 828 m |
Environment - current issues | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion | water pollution, degradation of coral reefs |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Desertification, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African 97%, European 3% | Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2% |
Exchange rates | emalangeni per US dollar - 7.7803 (January 2001), 6.9056 (2000), 6.1087 (1999), 5.4807 (1998), 4.6032 (1997), 4.2706 (1996); note - the Swazi lilangeni is at par with the South African rand; emalangeni is the plural form of lilangeni | Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 30.345 (January 2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.250 (2000), 25.186 (1999), 22.993 (1998), 21.057 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986) head of government: Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas DLAMINI (since 9 August 1996) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Karl OFFMANN (since 25 February 2002) and Vice President Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 17 September 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 17 September 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA% |
Exports | $881 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit | clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses |
Exports - partners | South Africa 65%, EU 12%, Mozambique 11%, US 5% (1998) | UK 25.8%, France 20.8%, US 16.0%, South Africa 10.9%, Germany, Italy (2000 est.) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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 | four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12.9 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 46% services: 44% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 33% services: 61% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,800 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.4% (2000 est.) | 5.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 30 S, 31 30 E | 20 17 S, 57 33 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa | the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs |
Highways | total:
3,000 km paved: 850 km unpaved: 2,150 km (1997) |
total: 1,860 km
paved: 1,786 km (including 36 km of expressways) unpaved: 74 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry |
Imports | $928 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $2 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals (1996) |
Imports - partners | South Africa 84%, EU 5%, Japan 2%, Singapore 2% (1998) | South Africa 20.0%, France 19.0%, India 9.0%, Hong Kong 5.2%, UK (2000 est.) |
Independence | 6 September 1968 (from UK) | 12 March 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.7% (FY95/96) | 8% (2000 est.) |
Industries | mining (coal and asbestos), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates | food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 109.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 16.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.4% (2000 est.) | 4.2% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 670 sq km (1993 est.) | 200 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch | Supreme Court |
Labor force | NA | 514,000 (1995) (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | private sector 70%, public sector 30% | construction and industry 36%, services 24%, agriculture and fishing 14%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, transportation and communication 7%, finance 3% (1995) (1995) |
Land boundaries | total:
535 km border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
11% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 62% forests and woodland: 7% other: 20% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 49.26%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) | English (official), Creole, French (official), Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bhojpuri |
Legal system | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas |
Legislative branch | 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 16 and 24 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) 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 |
unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held by September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.62 years male: 37.86 years female: 39.4 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.53 years
male: 67.54 years female: 75.58 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 76.7% male: 78% female: 75.6% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.9% male: 87.1% female: 78.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Political Map of the World |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 66,004 GRT/90,017 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, combination bulk 2, container 2, refrigerated cargo 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience:, Belgium 1, India 3, Norway 1, Switzerland 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army), Royal Swaziland Police Force | National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $19.198 million (FY00/01) | $9.1 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.75% (FY00/01) | 0.2% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
248,084 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 340,050 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
143,618 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 171,239 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) | Independence Day, 12 March (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Swazi(s) adjective: Swazi |
noun: Mauritian(s)
adjective: Mauritian |
Natural hazards | NA | cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards |
Natural resources | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc | arable land, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Imbokodvo National Movement or INM [leader NA]; Ngwane National Libertatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]; Swaziland National Front or SWANAFRO [Elmond SHONGWE, president]; Swaziland Progressive Party or SPP [J. J. NQUKU, president]; Swaziland United Front or SUF [Matsapa SHONGWE, leader]
note: political parties are banned by the constitution promulgated on 13 October 1978; illegal parties are prohibited from holding large public gatherings; the organizations listed are political associations |
Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Militant Renaissance or MMR [Dr. Paramhansa NABABSING]; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or OPR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | various labor unions |
Population | 1,104,343
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 2001 est.) |
1,200,206 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 10% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.83% (2001 est.) | 0.86% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Port Louis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 6 (2000) | AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | 155,000 (1997) | 420,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
297 km; note - includes 71 km which are not in use narrow gauge: 297 km 1.067-m gauge |
0 km (2002) |
Religions | Protestant 55%, Muslim 10%, Roman Catholic 5%, indigenous beliefs 30% | Hindu 52%, Christian 28.3% (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant 2.3%), Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
not a modern system domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: small system with good service
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,500 (2000) | 280,900 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 30,000 (2000) | 180,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2000) | 2 (plus several repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains | small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 5.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1995 est.) | 8.6% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |