Trinidad and Tobago (2002) | Benin (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 8 counties, 3 municipalities*, and 1 ward**; Arima*, Caroni, Mayaro, Nariva, Port-of-Spain*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick, San Fernando*, Tobago**, Victoria | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 23% (male 136,807; female 131,177)
15-64 years: 70.2% (male 419,847; female 396,643) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 35,146; female 44,104) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 47% (male 1,668,817; female 1,638,291)
15-64 years: 50.7% (male 1,739,517; female 1,834,231) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 67,504; female 93,130) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, sugarcane, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001) |
Airports | 6 (2001) | 5 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | The islands came under British control in the 19th century; independence was granted in 1962. The country is one of the most prosperous in the Caribbean thanks largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing. Tourism, mostly in Tobago, is targeted for expansion and is growing. | 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 | 13.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 43.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.54 billion
expenditures: $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $117.3 million (1998) (1998) |
revenues: $377.4 million
expenditures: $561.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
Capital | Port-of-Spain | Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to December) | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 362 km | 121 km |
Constitution | 1 August 1976 | December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
Currency | Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TTD) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 8.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.65 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.2 billion (2000 est.) | $1.6 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Roy L. AUSTIN
embassy: 15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain mailing address: P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain telephone: [1] (868) 622-6371 through 6376 FAX: [1] (868) 628-5462 |
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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mackisack LOGIE
chancery: 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 467-6490 FAX: [1] (202) 785-3130 consulate(s) general: Miami 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 are in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, but states accept 2001 arbitration over disputed Niger River islands; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Nigeria; in 2001, Benin claimed Togo moved the boundary stones - joint commission presently resurveying the boundary |
Economic aid - recipient | $24 million (1999 est.) | $342.6 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Trinidad and Tobago has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses. A leading performer in the past 4 years has been the booming natural gas sector. Tourism is a growing sector, although not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The expected recovery of the global economy, along with anticipated higher oil prices, are plus factors for 2002. Negative factors are persistent high unemployment and the political uncertainties following the contentious selection of a new government in December 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 | 4.792 billion kWh (2000) | 631.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 376 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 5.153 billion kWh (2000) | 274.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 14.2%
hydro: 85.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion | inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 39.5%, East Indian (a local term - primarily immigrants from northern India) 40.3%, mixed 18.4%, white 0.6%, Chinese and other 1.2% | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 |
Exchange rates | Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.2466 (January 2002), 6.2332 (2001), 6.2998 (2000), 6.2989 (1999), 6.2983 (1998), 6.2517 (1997) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George Maxwell RICHARDS (since 17 March 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Patrick MANNING (since 24 December 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term; election last held 14 February 2003 (next to be held NA 2006); the president usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives election results: George Maxwell RICHARDS elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 43% |
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 | $4.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers | cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa |
Exports - partners | US 45.9%, Caricom countries 26.1%, Latin America 9.5%, EU 5.7% (1999) | India 25%, Italy 11.1%, Indonesia 7.4%, China 7.2%, Thailand 6.7%, Brazil 6.1%, UK 4.4%, Niger 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.6 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7.38 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 43% services: 55% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 38%
industry: 15% services: 47% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,000 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2001 est.) | 6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 61 00 W | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
Geography - note | Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
Highways | total: 8,320 km
paved: 4,252 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996) |
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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; producer of cannabis | 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 | $3.5 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 39.8%, Venezuela 11.9%, EU 11%, Caricom 4.8% (1999) | China 30.7%, France 15.7%, UK 4.8%, Italy 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 31 August 1962 (from UK) | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.2% (2001) (2001) | 8.3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles | textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001) |
Infant mortality rate | 24.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 86.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 91.79 deaths/1,000 live births female: 81.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.6% (2001 est.) | 3.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 17 (2000) | 4 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature (comprised of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission); High Court of Justice; Court of Appeals the highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
Labor force | 564,000 (2000) (2000) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | construction and utilities 12%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 14%, agriculture 10%, services 64% (1997 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.62%
permanent crops: 9.16% other: 76.22% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 15.28%
permanent crops: 1.36% other: 83.36% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
Legal system | based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; members appointed by the president for a maximum term of five years) and the House of Representatives (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 October 2002 (next to be held by October 2007) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - PNM 55.5%, UNC 44.5%; seats by party - PNM 20, UNC 16 note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly, with 15 members serving four-year terms |
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: 68.59 years
male: 66.04 years female: 71.25 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 51.08 years
male: 50.35 years female: 51.84 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94% (2000) male: 95.9% (1999) female: 91.7% (1999) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 40.9% male: 56.2% female: 26.5% (2000) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,910 GRT/7,546 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: United States 1 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (including Ground Force, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Trinidad and Tobago Police Service | Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force), National Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $90 million (1999) | $80.8 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (1999) | 2.7% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 347,831 (2002 est.) | note: both sexes are liable for military service
males age 15-49: 1,597,562 females age 15-49: 1,536,036 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 248,324 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 805,603
females age 15-49: 809,961 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 75,021
females: 78,998 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 31 August (1962) | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
Natural hazards | outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, asphalt | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
Net migration rate | -10.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,032 km; petroleum products 19 km; natural gas 904 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | National Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Hochoy CHARLES]; People's Empowerment Party or PEP [leader NA]; People's National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; Team Unity or TUN [Ramesh MAHARAJ]; United National Congress or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY] | 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 | Jamaat-al Musilmeen [Yasin BAKR] | NA |
Population | 1,163,724 (July 2002 est.) | 7,041,490
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.) |
Population below poverty line | 21% (1992 est.) | 37% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.52% (2002 est.) | 2.95% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Pointe-a-Pierre, Point Fortin, Point Lisas, Port-of-Spain, Scarborough, Tembladora | Cotonou, Porto-Novo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) |
Radios | 680,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | minimal agricultural railroad system near San Fernando; common carrier railway service was discontinued in 1968 (2001) | total: 578 km
narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 29.4%, Hindu 23.8%, Anglican 10.9%, Muslim 5.8%, Presbyterian 3.4%, other 26.7% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2002 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: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent international service; good local service
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Barbados and Guyana |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | 252,000 (1999) | 51,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 17,411 (1997) | 55,500 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1997) | 1;; (2001) |
Terrain | mostly plains with some hills and low mountains | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 6.04 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.8% (2001) (2001) | NA% |
Waterways | none | streams navigable along small sections, important only locally |