Compare Swaziland (2007) - Mauritania (2006)

Compare Swaziland (2007) z Mauritania (2006)

	Swaziland (2007)	Mauritania (2006)

Administrative divisions	4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni	12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza
Age structure	0-14 years: 40.3% (male 230,238/female 226,184) 15-64 years: 56.1% (male 304,899/female 331,036) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 15,870/female 24,839) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 45.6% (male 726,376/female 723,013) 15-64 years: 52.2% (male 818,408/female 839,832) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 28,042/female 41,717) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep	dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn; cattle, sheep
Airports	18 (2007)	25 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007)	total: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2007)	total: 17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Area	total: 17,363 sq km land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km	total: 1,030,700 sq km land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than New Jersey	slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico
Background	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 King MSWATI III, the world's last ruling monarch, to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy, although he has backslid on these promises in recent years. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection.	Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA seized power in a coup in 1984. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as flawed, but October 2001 legislative and municipal elections were generally free and open. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council headed by Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL, which declared it would remain in power for up to two years while it created conditions for genuine democratic institutions and organized elections. For now, however, Mauritania remains an autocratic state, and the country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population and different Moor (Arab-Berber) communities.
Birth rate	26.98 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	40.99 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $977 million expenditures: $1.034 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $421 million expenditures: $378 million; including capital expenditures of $154 million (2002 est.)
Capital	name: Mbabane geographic coordinates: 26 18 S, 31 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Lobamba (royal and legislative capital)	name: Nouakchott geographic coordinates: 18 06 N, 15 57 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	varies from tropical to near temperate	desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	754 km
Constitution	signed by the King in July 2005 went into effect on 8 February 2006	12 July 1991
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland conventional short form: Swaziland local long form: Umbuso weSwatini local short form: eSwatini	conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah
Death rate	30.35 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	12.16 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$484 million (2006 est.)	$2.5 billion (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Lynn ALLISON embassy: Central Bank Building, Mahlokahla Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Steven KOUTSIS embassy: 288 Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 525-2660/525-2663 FAX: [222] 525-1592
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Ephraim Mandla HLOPHE chancery: 1712 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5002 FAX: [1] (202) 234-8254	chief of mission: Ambassador Tijani Ould Mohamed EL KERIM chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700, 5701 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623
Disputes - international	in 2006, Swazi king advocates resort to ICJ to claim parts of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal from South Africa	Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara have been dormant in recent years
Economic aid - recipient	$46.03 million (2005)	$305.7 million (2002)
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 more than nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends 60% 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 2004-05 because of drought, and nearly two-fifths of the adult population has been infected by HIV/AIDS.	Half the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though many of the nomads and subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for nearly 40% of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In the past, drought and economic mismanagement resulted in a buildup of foreign debt which now stands at more than three times the level of annual exports. In February 2000, Mauritania qualified for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in December 2001 received strong support from donor and lending countries at a triennial Consultative Group review. A new investment code approved in December 2001 improved the opportunities for direct foreign investment. Ongoing negotiations with the IMF involve problems of economic reforms and fiscal discipline. In 2001, exploratory oil wells in tracts 80 km offshore indicated potential extraction at current world oil prices. Mauritania has an estimated 1 billion barrels of proved reserves. Substantial oil production and exports are scheduled to begin in early 2006 and may average 75,000 barrels per day for that year. Meantime the government emphasizes reduction of poverty, improvement of health and education, and promoting privatization of the economy.
Electricity - consumption	1.3 billion kWh (2005)	172.6 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	872 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	460 million kWh (2005)	185.6 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m	lowest point: Sebkhet Te-n-Dghamcha -5 m highest point: Kediet Ijill 915 m
Environment - current issues	limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion	overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal, which is the only perennial river; locust infestation
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	African 97%, European 3%	mixed Maur/black 40%, Moor 30%, black 30%
Exchange rates	emalangeni per US dollar - 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002)	ouguiyas per US dollar - NA (2005), NA (2004), 263.03 (2003), 271.74 (2002), 255.63 (2001)
Executive branch	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 from among the elected members of the House of Assembly	chief of state: Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL, whose Military Council for Justice and Democracy deposed longtime President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA in a coup on 3 August 2005 head of government: Prime Minister Sidi Mohamed Ould BOUBAKAR (since 8 August 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second consecutive term); note - passage of a constitutional reform referendum in July 2006 limits president to two five-year terms; election last held 7 November 2003 (next to be held 11 March 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected for a third term with 60.8% of the vote
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit	iron ore, fish and fish products, gold
Exports - partners	South Africa 59.7%, EU 8.8%, US 8.8%, Mozambique 6.2% (2006)	Italy 14.9%, Japan 12.3%, France 11.8%, Belgium 8.5%, Germany 8.3%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.2%, Spain 6.5%, Russia 5%, Netherlands 4.4% (2005)
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	green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 11.9% industry: 46.1% services: 41.9% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 25% industry: 29% services: 46% (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2.1% (2006 est.)	5.5% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	26 30 S, 31 30 E	20 00 N, 12 00 W
Geography - note	landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa	most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 1.6% highest 10%: 40.7% (2001)	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 30.2% (2000)
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals	machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods
Imports - partners	South Africa 95.6%, EU 0.9%, Japan 0.9%, Singapore 0.3% (2006)	France 18.5%, UK 7.2%, US 7%, China 6%, Spain 5%, Belgium 4.3% (2005)
Independence	6 September 1968 (from UK)	28 November 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	3.7% (FY95/96)	2% (2000 est.)
Industries	coal, wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel	fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum
Infant mortality rate	total: 70.66 deaths/1,000 live births male: 74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 69.48 deaths/1,000 live births male: 72.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 66.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	5.7% (2006 est.)	7% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	500 sq km (2003)	490 sq km (2002)
Judicial branch	High Court; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts
Labor force	300,000 (2006)	786,000 (2001)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%	agriculture: 50% industry: 10% services: 40% (2001 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 535 km border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km	total: 5,074 km border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km
Land use	arable land: 10.25% permanent crops: 0.81% other: 88.94% (2005)	arable land: 0.2% permanent crops: 0.01% other: 99.79% (2005)
Languages	English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official)	Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, French, Hassaniya, Wolof
Legal system	based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations	a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament or Libandla consists of the Senate (30 seats; 10 members appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats; 10 members appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be held in October 2008) 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	bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; a portion of seats up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (95 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 9 and 16 April 2004 (next to be held 21 January 2007); National Assembly - last held 19 November and 3 December 2006 election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 32.23 years male: 31.84 years female: 32.62 years (2007 est.)	total population: 53.12 years male: 50.88 years female: 55.42 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 81.6% male: 82.6% female: 80.8% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 41.7% male: 51.8% female: 31.9% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa	Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Military branches	Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (USDF): Ground Force (includes air wing), Royal Swaziland Police Force (RSPF) (2007)	Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Navy (Marine Mauritanienne; includes naval infantry), Air Force (Force Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, FAIM) (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$19.32 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	4.7% (2006)	1.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 6 September (1968)	Independence Day, 28 November (1960)
Nationality	noun: Swazi(s) adjective: Swazi	noun: Mauritanian(s) adjective: Mauritanian
Natural hazards	drought	hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts
Natural resources	asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc	iron ore, gypsum, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	the status of political parties, previously banned, is unclear under the new (2006) Constitution and currently being debated - the following are considered political associations; African United Democratic Party or AUDP [Stanley MAUNDZISA, president]; Imbokodvo National Movement or INM; Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]	Action for Change or AC (no longer active) [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Alliance for Justice and Democracy or AJD [Cisse Amadou CHEIKHOU]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality, and Justice or PLEJ [Ba Mamdou ALASSANE]; Party of Democratic Convergence or PCD [Cheikh Ould HORMA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progressive Alliance or APP [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Progress Force Union or UFP (no longer active) [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD]; Rally of Democratic Forces or RFD [Ahmed Ould DADDAH]; Rally for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal or PRDR (formerly ruling Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS) [Boullah Ould MOGUEYA]; Right Way or SAWAB [Cheikh Ould Sidi Ould HANANA]; Union for Democracy and Progress or UDP [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]; Union of Forces of Progress or UFP [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD] note: the Party of Democratic Convergence was banned in October 2005 because it was regarded as Islamist and therefore in breach of Mauritanian law
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Arab nationalists; Ba'thists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general]
Population	1,133,066 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.)	3,177,388 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	69% (2006)	40% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.337% (2007 est.)	2.88% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 2 (plus 4 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2004)	AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001)
Railways	total: 301 km narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2006)	717 km standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2005)
Religions	Zionist 40% (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship), Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, other (includes Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish) 30%	Muslim 100%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.921 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.639 male(s)/female total population: 0.947 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age	18 years of age; universal
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: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made) domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: country code - 222; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat
Telephones - main lines in use	44,000 (2006)	41,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	250,000 (2006)	745,600 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	12 (includes 7 relay stations) (2004)	1 (2002)
Terrain	mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains	mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills
Total fertility rate	3.43 children born/woman (2007 est.)	5.86 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	40% (2006 est.)	20% (2004 est.)

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