Swaziland (2003) | Swaziland (2004) | |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.4% (male 242,762; female 238,141)
15-64 years: 55.1% (male 317,526; female 321,709) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 18,040; female 23,041) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 41% (male 242,090; female 237,395)
15-64 years: 55.3% (male 323,004; female 324,029) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 18,685; female 24,038) (2004 est.) |
Airports | 18 (2002) | 18 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
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. | 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 | 29.37 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 28.55 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $448 million
expenditures: $506.9 million, including capital expenditures of $147 million (FY 01/02) |
revenues: $462.4 million
expenditures: $563.4 million, including capital expenditures of $147 million (2003) |
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 | a constitution was adopted 14 November 2003 |
Death rate | 21.08 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 23.06 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Economy - overview | 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 nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends more than 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 2002 because of drought, and more than one-third of the adult population was infected by HIV/AIDS. | 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 three-quarters 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 2002 because of drought, and more than one-third of the adult population was infected by HIV/AIDS. |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 58%
hydro: 42% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
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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, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Exchange rates | emalangeni per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998) | emalangeni per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000), 6.1095 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister 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 |
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 - partners | South Africa 72%, EU 14.2%, Mozambique 3.7%, US 3.5%, UK (1999) | South Africa 72%, EU 14.2%, Mozambique 3.7%, US 3.5% (1999) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.542 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.702 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17%
industry: 44% services: 39% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 16.2%
industry: 43.2% services: 40.5% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.6% (2002 est.) | 2.2% (2003 est.) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.7% (FY 95/96) | 3.7% (FY95/96) |
Infant mortality rate | total: 67.44 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 70.79 deaths/1,000 live births female: 63.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 68.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 71.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11.8% (2002 est.) | 7.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, 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) | 5 (2002) | - |
Land use | arable land: 9.77%
permanent crops: 0.7% other: 89.53% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10.35%
permanent crops: 0.7% other: 88.95% (2001) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 39.47 years
male: 41.02 years female: 37.87 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 37.54 years
male: 39.1 years female: 35.94 years (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army), Royal Swaziland Police Force | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army, including Air Wing) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20 million (FY01) | $29 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.75% (FY00) | 1.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 284,530 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 289,985 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 165,005 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 168,257 (2004 est.) |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Population | 1,161,219
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 2003 est.) |
1,169,241
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 growth rate | 0.83% (2003 est.) | 0.55% (2004 est.) |
Railways | total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2002) |
total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2003) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Telephone system | 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: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic 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 | 38,500 (2001) | 46,200 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 45,000 (2001) | 88,000 (2003) |
Total fertility rate | 3.92 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.81 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |