Togo (2008) | Tonga (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 5 regions (regions, singular - region); Centrale, Kara, Maritime, Plateaux, Savanes | 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42% (male 1,201,840/female 1,193,416)
15-64 years: 55.3% (male 1,535,855/female 1,617,631) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 61,658/female 91,179) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.1% (male 20,873; female 20,050)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 32,018; female 32,707) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,005; female 2,584) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 6 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 56,785 sq km
land: 54,385 sq km water: 2,400 sq km |
total: 748 sq km
land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than West Virginia | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | French Togoland became Togo in 1960. Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA, installed as military ruler in 1967, ruled Togo with a heavy hand for almost four decades. Despite the facade of multiparty elections instituted in the early 1990s, the government was largely dominated by President EYADEMA, whose Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party has maintained power almost continually since 1967 and maintains a majority of seats in today's legislature. Upon EYADEMA's death in February 2005, the military installed the president's son, Faure GNASSINGBE, and then engineered his formal election two months later. Democratic gains since then allowed Togo to hold its first relatively free and fair legislative elections in October 2007. After years of political unrest and fire from international organizations for human rights abuses, Togo is finally being re-welcomed into the international community. | The archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. It became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its independence in 1970 and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. |
Birth rate | 36.83 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 24.87 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $478.1 million
expenditures: $554.1 million (2007 est.) |
revenues: $39.9 million
expenditures: $52.4 million, including capital expenditures of $1.9 million (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | name: Lome
geographic coordinates: 6 08 N, 1 13 E time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Nuku'alofa |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) |
Coastline | 56 km | 419 km |
Constitution | multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992, adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992 | 4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967 |
Country name | conventional long form: Togolese Republic
conventional short form: Togo local long form: Republique togolaise local short form: none former: French Togoland |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga
conventional short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
Currency | - | pa'anga (TOP) |
Death rate | 9.65 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2 billion (2005) | $63.4 million (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David B. DUNN
embassy: 4332 Blvd. Gnassingbe Eyadema, Cite OUA, Lome mailing address: B. P. 852, Lome telephone: [228] 261-5470 FAX: [228] 261-5501 |
the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Lorempo LANDJERGUE
chancery: 2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4212 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3190 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Sonatane T. T. TUPOU
chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
Disputes - international | in 2001, Benin claimed Togo moved boundary monuments - joint commission continues to resurvey the boundary; in 2006 14,000 Togolese refugees remain in Benin and Ghana out of the 40,000 who fled there in 2005 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA, $86.71 million (2005 est.) | Australia $5.5 million, New Zealand $2.3 million (FY01/02) |
Economy - overview | This small, sub-Saharan economy is heavily dependent on both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported. Cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings with cotton being the most important cash crop. Togo is the world's fourth-largest producer of phosphate. The government's decade-long effort, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to implement economic reform measures, encourage foreign investment, and bring revenues in line with expenditures has moved slowly. Progress depends on follow through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress toward legislative elections, and continued support from foreign donors. Togo is working with donors to write a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) that could eventually lead to a debt reduction plan. Economic growth remains marginal due to declining cotton production, underinvestment in phosphate mining, and strained relations with donors. | Tonga, a small, open, South Pacific island economy, has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young and the continuing upturn in inflation are major issues facing the government. |
Electricity - consumption | 576 million kWh (2005) | 25.36 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 486 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by Ghana (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 176 million kWh (2005) | 27.27 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Agou 986 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1% | Polynesian, Europeans about 300 |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 482.71 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) | pa'anga per US dollar - NA (2003), 2.1952 (2002), 2.1236 (2001), 1.7585 (2000), 1.5991 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Faure GNASSINGBE (since 4 May 2005); note - Gnassingbe EYADEMA died on 5 February 2005 and was succeeded by his son, Faure GNASSINGBE, with the support of the military following international condemnation for the unconstitutional move he then stepped aside pending elections, and Abass BONFOH served as interim president; Faure GNASSINGBE later won popular elections in April 2005
head of government: Prime Minister Komlan MALLY (since 3 December 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held 24 April 2005 (next to be held by 2010); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Faure GNASSINGBE elected president; percent of vote - Faure GNASSINGBE 60.2%, Emmanuel Akitani BOB 38.3%, Nicolas LAWSON 1%, Harry OLYMPIO 0.5% |
chief of state: King Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965)
head of government: Prime Minister Prince Lavaka ata ULUKALALA (since NA February 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister James C. COCKER (since NA January 2001) cabinet: Cabinet, appointed by the monarch, consists of 12 members note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the Cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed for life by the monarch |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | reexports, cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops |
Exports - partners | Ghana 16.7%, Burkina Faso 14.4%, Benin 9.1%, Belgium 6.1%, Mali 5.8%, Germany 5.4%, India 4.6%, Netherlands 4.6% (2006) | US 50%, Japan 35.7%, Italy 3.6% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $236 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 40%
industry: 25% services: 35% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 26%
industry: 12% services: 62% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2007 est.) | 3% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 1 10 E | 20 00 S, 175 00 W |
Geography - note | the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited) |
Highways | - | total: 680 km
paved: 184 km unpaved: 496 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem | - |
Imports | 15,130 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | China 29.8%, UK 10.9%, France 8.9%, Netherlands 6%, Belgium 5.8%, US 4.6%, Estonia 4.2% (2006) | New Zealand 43.4%, Fiji 22.2%, Australia 11.1%, US 6.1% (2003) |
Independence | 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2007 est.) | 8.6% (FY98/99) |
Industries | phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement, handicrafts, textiles, beverages | tourism, fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 59.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.56 deaths/1,000 live births female: 51.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 12.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2007 est.) | 10.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 70 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (consists of the Privy Council with the addition of the chief justice of the Supreme Court) |
Labor force | 1.302 million (1998) | 33,910 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 65%
industry: 5% services: 30% (1998 est.) |
agriculture 65% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,647 km
border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 44.2%
permanent crops: 2.11% other: 53.69% (2005) |
arable land: 23.61%
permanent crops: 43.06% other: 33.33% (2001) |
Languages | French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north) | Tongan, English |
Legal system | French-based court system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on English law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 14 October 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - RPT 39.4%, UFC 37.0%, CAR 8.2%, independents 2.5%, other 12.9%; seats by party - RPT 50, UFC 27, CAR 4 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats - 12 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%; seats - HRDMT 7, traditionalist 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 57.86 years
male: 55.81 years female: 59.96 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 69.2 years
male: 66.74 years female: 71.79 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 60.9% male: 75.4% female: 46.9% (2003 est.) |
definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
total population: 98.5% male: 98.4% female: 98.7% (1996 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 30 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,918 GRT/3,852 DWT
by type: cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 (2007) |
total: 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 136,977 GRT/200,751 DWT
by type: bulk 3, cargo 21, chemical tanker 2, container 1, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: Albania 1, Australia 4, Brazil 1, Cyprus 1, Egypt 1, Greece 1, Lebanon 1, Liberia 1, Marshall Islands 1, Norway 1, Panama 2, Romania 1, Russia 1, Saudi Arabia 1, Switzerland 3, Syria 1, United (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Togolese Armed Forces (FAT): Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie (2005) | Tonga Defense Services: Ground Forces (Royal Marines, Royal Guard), Maritime Force (including Air Wing) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2005 est.) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1960) | Independence Day, 4 June (1970) |
Nationality | noun: Togolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Togolese |
noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
Natural hazards | hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou |
Natural resources | phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land | fish, fertile soil |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Action Committee for Renewal or CAR [Yawovi AGBOYIBO]; Democratic Convention of African Peoples or CDPA; Democratic Party for Renewal or PDR; Juvento [Monsilia DJATO]; Movement of the Believers of Peace and Equality or MOCEP; Pan-African Patriotic Convergence or CPP; Rally for the Support for Development and Democracy or RSDD [Harry OLYMPIO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [Faure GNASSINGBE]; Socialist Pact for Renewal or PSR; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Gagou KOKOU]; Union of Forces for a Change or UFC [Gilchrist OLYMPIO] | there are no political parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chair] |
Population | 5,701,579
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.) |
110,237 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 32% (1989 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.718% (2007 est.) | 1.94% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Neiafu, Nuku'alofa, Pangai |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Railways | total: 568 km
narrow gauge: 568 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
- |
Religions | Christian 29%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs 51% | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.007 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.949 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.676 male(s)/female total population: 0.965 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | NA years of age; universal (adult) | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fair system based on a network of microwave radio relay routes supplemented by open-wire lines and a mobile cellular system
domestic: microwave radio relay and open-wire lines for conventional system; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 15 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 228; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Symphonie |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (1996) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 82,100 (2006) | 11,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 708,000 (2006) | 3,400 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus 2 repeaters) (1997) | 2 (2001) |
Terrain | gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base |
Total fertility rate | 4.9 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 13.3% (1996 est.) |
Waterways | 50 km (seasonally on Mono River depending on rainfall) (2005) | - |