Sweden (2001) | Benin (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 21 counties (lan, singular and plural); Blekinge, Dalarnas, Gavleborgs, Gotlands, Hallands, Jamtlands, Jonkopings, Kalmar, Kronobergs, Norrbottens, Orebro, Ostergotlands, Skane, Sodermanlands, Stockholms, Uppsala, Varmlands, Vasterbottens, Vasternorrlands, Vastmanlands, Vastra Gotalands | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
18.19% (male 828,308; female 786,353) 15-64 years: 64.53% (male 2,911,949; female 2,814,730) 65 years and over: 17.28% (male 649,296; female 884,417) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 46.8% (male 1,711,075; female 1,679,439)
15-64 years: 51% (male 1,802,990; female 1,890,915) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 68,890; female 96,724) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, sugar beets, potatoes; meat, milk | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001) |
Airports | 255 (2000 est.) | 5 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
147 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 80 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
108 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 103 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
449,964 sq km land: 410,934 sq km water: 39,030 sq km |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war in almost two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both World Wars. Sweden's long-successful economic formula of a capitalist system interlarded with substantial welfare elements has recently been undermined by high unemployment, rising maintenance costs, and a declining position in world markets. Indecision over the country's role in the political and economic integration of Europe caused Sweden not to join the EU until 1995, and to forgo the introduction of the euro in 1999. | Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged. |
Birth rate | 9.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 42.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$133 billion expenditures: $125.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $698.9 million
expenditures: $613.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
Capital | Stockholm | Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government |
Climate | temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 3,218 km | 121 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1975 | December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Sweden conventional short form: Sweden local long form: Konungariket Sverige local short form: Sverige |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
Currency | Swedish krona (SEK) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 10.61 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.69 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $66.5 billion (1994) | $1.6 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Lyndon Lowell OLSON, Jr. embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds VAG 31, SE-11589 Stockholm mailing address: American Embassy Stockholm, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5750 (pouch) telephone: [46] (8) 783 53 00 FAX: [46] (8) 661 19 64 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Jan ELIASSON chancery: 1501 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1702 telephone: [1] (202) 467-2600 FAX: [1] (202) 467-2699 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN
chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996 |
Disputes - international | none | two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and ICJ ad hoc judges have been selected to rule on disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Nigeria; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.7 billion (1997) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $342.6 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Aided by peace and neutrality for the whole twentieth century, Sweden has achieved an enviable standard of living under a mixed system of high-tech capitalism and extensive welfare benefits. It has a modern distribution system, excellent internal and external communications, and a skilled labor force. Timber, hydropower, and iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy heavily oriented toward foreign trade. Privately owned firms account for about 90% of industrial output, of which the engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and exports. Agriculture accounts for only 2% of GDP and 2% of the jobs. In recent years, however, this extraordinarily favorable picture has been somewhat clouded by budgetary difficulties, high unemployment, and a gradual loss of competitiveness in international markets. Sweden has harmonized its economic policies with those of the EU, which it joined at the start of 1995. GDP growth is forecast for 4% in 2001. | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged a stable 5% in the past six years, but rapid population rise has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. The 2001 privatization policy should continue in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of initial government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, while pressing for speeded-up structural reforms. |
Electricity - consumption | 128.819 billion kWh (1999) | 631.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 15.9 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 8.35 billion kWh (1999) | 376 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 146.633 billion kWh (1999) | 274.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
5.53% hydro: 47.24% nuclear: 45.42% other: 1.81% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Kebnekaise 2,111 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
Environment - current issues | acid rain damaging soils and lakes; pollution of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | indigenous population: Swedes and Finnish and Sami minorities; foreign-born or first-generation immigrants: Finns, Yugoslavs, Danes, Norwegians, Greeks, Turks | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 |
Exchange rates | Swedish kronor per US dollar - 9.4669 (January 2001), 9.1622 (2000), 8.2624 (1999), 7.9499 (1998), 7.6349 (1997), 6.7060 (1996) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
King CARL XVI GUSTAF (since 19 September 1973); Heir Apparent Princess VICTORIA Ingrid Alice Desiree, daughter of the monarch (born 14 July 1977) head of government: Prime Minister Goran PERSSON (since 21 March 1996) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; prime minister elected by the Parliament; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: Goran PERSSON reelected prime minister with 131 out of 349 votes |
chief of state: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; runoff election held 22 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Mathieu KEREKOU reelected president; percent of vote - Mathieu KEREKOU 84.1%, Bruno AMOUSSOU 15.9% note: the four top-ranking contenders following the first-round presidential elections were: Mathieu KEREKOU (incumbent) 45.4%, Nicephore SOGOLO (former president) 27.1%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI (National Assembly Speaker) 12.6%, and Bruno AMOUSSOU (Minister of State) 8.6%; the second-round balloting, originally scheduled for 18 March 2001, was postponed four days because both SOGOLO and HOUNGBEDJI withdrew alleging electoral fraud; this left KEREKOU to run against his own Minister of State, AMOUSSOU, in what was termed a "friendly match" |
Exports | $95.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery 35%, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron and steel products, chemicals | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa |
Exports - partners | EU 55% (Germany 11%, UK 10%, Denmark 6%, Finland 5%, France 5%), US 9%, Norway 8% (1999) | China 21.1%, India 18%, Thailand 6.8%, Ghana 5.8%, Niger 4.4%, Indonesia 4.1% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with a yellow cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $197 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7.742 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2.2% industry: 27.9% services: 69.9% (1999) |
agriculture: 36.4%
industry: 14.5% services: 49.1% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $22,200 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.3% (2000 est.) | 5.5% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 62 00 N, 15 00 E | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
Geography - note | strategic location along Danish Straits linking Baltic and North Seas | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
210,760 km paved: 162,707 km (including 1,428 km of expressways) unpaved: 48,053 km (1999) |
total: 6,787 km
paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.7% highest 10%: 20.1% (1992) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure |
Imports | $80 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, motor vehicles, iron and steel; foodstuffs, clothing | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | EU 67% (Germany 18%, UK 10%, Denmark 7%, France 6%), Norway 8%, US 6% (1999) | China 29.5%, France 14.9%, UK 4.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.7%, Thailand 4.6% (2003) |
Independence | 6 June 1523 (Gustav VASA elected king) | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2000 est.) | 8.3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | iron and steel, precision equipment (bearings, radio and telephone parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed foods, motor vehicles | textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001) |
Infant mortality rate | 3.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 85.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.2% (2000 est.) | 1.5% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 6, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 29 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1993 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Hogsta Domstolen (judges are appointed by the prime minister and the cabinet) | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
Labor force | 4.4 million (2000 est.) | NA (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 2%, industry 24%, services 74% (2000 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
2,205 km border countries: Finland 586 km, Norway 1,619 km |
total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 68% other: 24% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 18.08%
permanent crops: 2.4% other: 79.52% (2001) |
Languages | Swedish
note: small Lapp- and Finnish-speaking minorities |
French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
Legal system | civil law system influenced by customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Riksdag (349 seats; members are elected by popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - Social Democrats 36.5%, Moderates 22.7%, Left Party 12%, Christian Democrats 11.8%, Center Party 5.1%, Liberal Party 4.7%, Greens 4.5%; seats by party - Social Democrats 131, Moderates 82, Left Party 43, Christian Democrats 42, Center Party 18, Liberal Party 17, Greens 16 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Presidential Movement 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.71 years male: 77.07 years female: 82.5 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 50.81 years
male: 50.25 years female: 51.39 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1979 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 40.9% male: 56.2% female: 26.5% (2000) |
Location | Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines territorial sea: 12 NM (adjustments made to return a portion of straits to high seas) |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
167 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,205,370 GRT/1,663,091 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 28, chemical tanker 31, combination ore/oil 4, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 29, railcar carrier 1, roll on/roll off 40, short-sea passenger 4, specialized tanker 6, vehicle carrier 17 (2000 est.) |
none |
Military branches | Swedish Army, Royal Swedish Navy, Swedish Air Force | Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5 billion (FY98) | $98.3 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.1% (FY98) | 2.7% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,062,566 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,638,010
females age 15-49: 1,647,850 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,803,995 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 835,561
females age 15-49: 835,633 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
51,506 (2001 est.) |
males: 77,552
females: 81,841 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Flag Day, 6 June | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Swede(s) adjective: Swedish |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
Natural hazards | ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
Natural resources | zinc, iron ore, lead, copper, silver, timber, uranium, hydropower | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
Net migration rate | 0.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 84 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party [Lennart DALEUS]; Christian Democratic Party [Alf SVENSSON]; Communist Workers' Party [Rolf HAGEL]; Green Party [no formal leader but party spokesperson is Briger SCHLAUG]; Left Party or VP (formerly Communist) [Gudrun SCHYMAN]; Liberal People's Party [Lars LEIJONBORG]; Moderate Party (conservative) [Bo LUNDGREN]; New Democracy Party [Vivianne FRANZEN]; Social Democratic Party [Goran PERSSON] | African Congress for Renewal or DUNYA [Saka SALEY]; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Alliance of the Social Democratic Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Coalition of Democratic Forces [Gatien HOUNGBEDJI]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Front for Renewal and Development or FARD-ALAFIA [Jerome Sakia KINA]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Bertin BORNA]; Key Force or FC [leader NA]; Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, IDP, and 4 other small parties); Renaissance Party du Benin or PRB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU]
note: approximately 20 additional minor parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 8,875,053 (July 2001 est.) | 7,250,033
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% | 37% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.02% (2001 est.) | 2.89% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Gavle, Goteborg, Halmstad, Helsingborg, Hudiksvall, Kalmar, Karlshamn, Malmo, Solvesborg, Stockholm, Sundsvall | Cotonou, Porto-Novo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 265, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) |
Radios | 8.25 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
12,821 km (includes 3,594 km of privately owned railways) standard gauge: 12,821 km 1.435-m gauge (7,918 km electrified and 1,152 km double track) (1998) |
total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Lutheran 87%, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 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: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
excellent domestic and international facilities; automatic system domestic: coaxial and multiconductor cables carry most of the voice traffic; parallel microwave radio relay systems carry some additional telephone channels international: 5 submarine coaxial cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Sweden shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 6.017 million (December 1998) | 66,500 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3.835 million (October 1998) | 236,200 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 169 (plus 1,299 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.53 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.95 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% (2000 est.) | NA |
Waterways | 2,052 km
note: navigable for small steamers and barges |
150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2004) |