Swaziland (2001) | Seychelles (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni | 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka |
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: 27.8% (male 11,238; female 11,002)
15-64 years: 66% (male 25,763; female 27,086) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 1,667; female 3,342) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish |
Airports | 18 (2000 est.) | 14 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
Area | total:
17,363 sq km land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | 2.5 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. | A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. |
Birth rate | 40.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.27 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$400 million expenditures: $450 million, including capital expenditures of $115 million (FY96/97) |
revenues: $249 million
expenditures: $262 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) (1998 est.) |
Capital | Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital | Victoria |
Climate | varies from tropical to near temperate | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 491 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 | 18 June 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Swaziland conventional short form: Swaziland |
conventional long form: Republic of Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles |
Currency | lilangeni (SZL) | Seychelles rupee (SCR) |
Death rate | 21.84 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $281 million (2000 est.) | $240 million (1999 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles |
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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
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 | claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) |
Economic aid - recipient | $55 million (1995) | $16.4 million (1995) (1995) |
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 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. The vulnerability of the tourist sector was illustrated by the sharp drop in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs, and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2001, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Also, tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have impaired short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles rupee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. |
Electricity - consumption | 198 million kWh (1999) | 148.8 million 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) | 160 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
53.33% hydro: 46.67% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% 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: Morne Seychellois 905 m |
Environment - current issues | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion | water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | African 97%, European 3% | mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab |
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 | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.7458 (January 2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000), 5.3426 (1999), 5.2622 (1998), 5.0263 (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 France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: France Albert RENE reelected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 54.19%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 44.95%, Philippe BOULLE 0.86%; note - the first time that presidential elections have been held separately from legislative elections |
Exports | $881 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $182.6 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit | canned tuna, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) |
Exports - partners | South Africa 65%, EU 12%, Mozambique 11%, US 5% (1998) | UK 48.1%, Italy 23.1%, France 14.8%, Netherlands 2.7% (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
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 | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $605 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 46% services: 44% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 26% services: 71% (1999) (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,600 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.4% (2000 est.) | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 30 S, 31 30 E | 4 35 S, 55 40 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa | 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands |
Highways | total:
3,000 km paved: 850 km unpaved: 2,150 km (1997) |
total: 280 km
paved: 176 km unpaved: 104 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $928 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $360.2 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | South Africa 84%, EU 5%, Japan 2%, Singapore 2% (1998) | Italy 13.3%, South Africa 10.7%, France 9.9%, UK 8.0%, Singapore 7.7% (1999) |
Independence | 6 September 1968 (from UK) | 29 June 1976 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.7% (FY95/96) | NA% |
Industries | mining (coal and asbestos), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates | fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 109.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 16.86 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.4% (2000 est.) | 6.1% (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, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 670 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | NA | 30,900 (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | private sector 70%, public sector 30% | industry 19%, services 71%, agriculture 10% (1989) (1989) |
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: 2.22%
permanent crops: 13.33% other: 84.45% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) | English (official), French (official), Creole |
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 English common law, French civil law, and customary law |
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 or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4-6 December 2002 (next held by 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 54.3%, SNP 42.6%, DP 3.1%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11 note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.62 years male: 37.86 years female: 39.4 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 70.97 years
male: 65.48 years female: 76.63 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: 58% male: 56% female: 60% (1971 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa | Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,086 GRT/10,192 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: South Africa 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army), Royal Swaziland Police Force | Army, Coast Guard (includes Air Wing), Presidential Protection Unit (includes Presidential Guard), Police Force (includes Police Mobile Unit, a special weapons and tactics unit capable of assisting the Army in maintaining internal stability) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $19.198 million (FY00/01) | $11 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.75% (FY00/01) | 1.8% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
248,084 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 23,210 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
143,618 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 11,554 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) | Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) |
Nationality | noun:
Swazi(s) adjective: Swazi |
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychellois |
Natural hazards | NA | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible |
Natural resources | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc | fish, copra, cinnamon trees |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -5.99 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 |
Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE] - the governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Roman Catholic Church; trade 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.) |
80,098 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.83% (2001 est.) | 0.47% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Victoria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 6 (2000) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 155,000 (1997) | 42,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
297 km; note - includes 71 km which are not in use narrow gauge: 297 km 1.067-m gauge |
0 km (2003) |
Religions | Protestant 55%, Muslim 10%, Roman Catholic 5%, indigenous beliefs 30% | Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age | 17 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: effective system
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,500 (2000) | 19,635 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 30,000 (2000) | 16,316 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2000) | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs |
Total fertility rate | 5.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.81 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (1995 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | none |