Trinidad and Tobago (2006) | West Bank (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 regional corporations, 2 city corporations, 3 borough corporations, 1 ward
regional corporations: Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo, Diego Martin, Mayaro/Rio Claro, Penal/Debe, Princes Town, Sangre Grande, San Juan/Laventille, Siparia, Tunapuna/Piarco city corporations: Port-of-Spain, San Fernando borough corporations: Arima, Chaguanas, Point Fortin ward: Tobago |
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Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.1% (male 109,936/female 104,076)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 398,657/female 361,093) 65 years and over: 8.6% (male 41,162/female 50,918) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.8% (male 518,470; female 493,531)
15-64 years: 52.8% (male 623,785; female 595,376) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 34,226; female 45,816) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 6 (2006) | 3 (2003 est.) |
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 (2006) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
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Area | total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 5,860 sq km
land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly smaller than Delaware |
Background | First colonized by the Spanish, the islands came under British control in the early 19th century. The islands' sugar industry was hurt by the emancipation of the slaves in 1834. Manpower was replaced with the importation of contract laborers from India between 1845 and 1917, which boosted sugar production as well as the cocoa industry. The discovery of oil on Trinidad in 1910 added another important export. Independence was attained 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. | The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external and internal security and for public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank that began in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, were derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. Following the death of longtime Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT in November 2004, the election of his successor Mahmud ABBAS in January 2005 could bring a turning point in the conflict. |
Birth rate | 12.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 33.21 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.5 billion
expenditures: $4.06 billion; including capital expenditures of $117.3 million (2005 est.) |
revenues: $676.6 million
expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (includes Gaza Strip) (2003 est.) |
Capital | name: Port-of-Spain
geographic coordinates: 10 39 N, 61 31 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to December) | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters |
Coastline | 362 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1 August 1976 | - |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
Currency | - | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) |
Death rate | 10.57 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.07 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.767 billion (2005 est.) | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) |
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 |
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Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Marina Annette VALERE
chancery: 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 467-6490 FAX: [1] (202) 785-3130 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York |
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Disputes - international | Barbados will assert its claim before the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into its waters; Guyana has also expressed its intention to challenge this boundary as it may extend into its waters as well | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation |
Economic aid - recipient | $24 million (1999 est.) | $2 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (2001-02 est.) |
Economy - overview | Trinidad and Tobago, the leading Caribbean producer of oil and gas, has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses. Tourism is a growing sector, although not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The economy benefits from low inflation and a growing trade surplus. Prospects for growth in 2006 are good as prices for oil, petrochemicals, and liquefied natural gas are expected to remain high, and foreign direct investment continues to grow to support expanded capacity in the energy sector. The government is coping with a rise in violent crime. | Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996 due to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment, which in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures during the next three years decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and severely disrupted trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Including Gaza Strip, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israel, in Israeli settlements, or in joint industrial zones have lost their jobs. In addition, about 80,000 Palestinian workers inside the Territories are losing their jobs. International aid of $2 billion in 2001-02 to the West Bank and Gaza Strip prevented the complete collapse of the economy. In 2004, on-going border issues and the death of Yasser ARAFAT continued to complicate the economic situation. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.651 billion kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 6.076 billion kWh (2003) | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m |
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | Indian (South Asian) 40%, African 37.5%, mixed 20.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 0.8% (2000 census) | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% |
Exchange rates | Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.2842 (2005), 6.299 (2004), 6.2951 (2003), 6.2487 (2002), 6.2332 (2001) | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) |
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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 14 February 2003 (next to be held in 2008); 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% |
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Exports | NA bbl/day | $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone |
Exports - partners | US 68.8%, Jamaica 5.5%, Barbados 2.9% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) |
Flag description | red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side to the lower fly side | - |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.7 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.7%
industry: 57% services: 42.3% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7% (2005 est.) | -22% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 61 00 W | 32 00 N, 35 15 E |
Geography - note | Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 244 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts(August 2003 est.) |
Highways | - | total: 4,500 km
paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements (1997 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 | - |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals | food, consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | US 27.7%, Venezuela 13.3%, Brazil 11.8%, Japan 5.5%, Canada 4.2% (2005) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) |
Independence | 31 August 1962 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | 9% (2005 est.) | NA |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 20.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.9% (2005 est.) | 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | - |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
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 after consultation with 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; Caribbean Court of Appeals member; Court of Appeals; the highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London | - |
Labor force | 620,000 (2005 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 9.5%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 14%, construction and utilities 12.4%, services 64.1% (1997 est.) | agriculture 13%, industry 21%, services 66% (1996) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.62%
permanent crops: 9.16% other: 76.22% (2005) |
arable land: 16.9%
permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
Legal system | based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | - |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; 16 members appointed by the ruling party, 9 by the President, 6 by the opposition party 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 12 members serving four-year terms; last election held January 2005; seats by party - PNM 11, DAC 1 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 66.76 years
male: 65.71 years female: 67.86 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 72.88 years
male: 71.14 years female: 74.72 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Middle East, west of Jordan |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 16,760 GRT/7,941 DWT
by type: liquefied gas 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 1 (US 1) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2006) |
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Military branches | Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force: Ground Force, Coast Guard (includes air wing) (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $66.72 million (2003 est.) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2003 est.) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 31 August (1962) | - |
Nationality | noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian |
noun: NA
adjective: NA |
Natural hazards | outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms | droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, asphalt | arable land |
Net migration rate | -11.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 2.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 253 km; gas 1,278 km; oil 571 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | National Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Lennox SANKERSINGH]; People's National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; Team Unity or TU [Ramesh MAHARAJ]; United National Congress or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY]; Democratic Action Committee or DAC [Hochoy CHARLES], note - only active in Tobago | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Jamaat-al Muslimeen [Yasin BAKR] | - |
Population | 1,065,842 (July 2006 est.) | 2,311,204
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 21% (1992 est.) | 60% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.87% (2006 est.) | 3.21% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 18, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 26%, Hindu 22.5%, Anglican 7.8%, Baptist 7.2%, Pentecostal 6.8%, other Christian 5.8%, Muslim 5.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 4%, other 10.8%, unspecified 1.4%, none 1.9% (2000 census) | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent international service; good local service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-868; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Barbados and Guyana |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
Telephones - main lines in use | 323,500 (2005) | 301,600 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 800,000 (2005) | 480,000 (cellular subscribers in both West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (2005) | NA |
Terrain | mostly plains with some hills and low mountains | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 4.52 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 8% (2005 est.) | 50% (includes Gaza Strip) (2002 est.) |