Trinidad and Tobago (2008) | Wallis and Futuna (2006) | |
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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 |
none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three kingdoms at the second order named Alo, Sigave, Wallis |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.5% (male 105,994/female 100,156)
15-64 years: 71.6% (male 397,699/female 358,755) 65 years and over: 8.9% (male 42,039/female 51,965) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry | breadfruit, yams, taro, bananas; pigs, goats; fish |
Airports | 6 (2007) | 2 (2006) |
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 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 274 sq km
land: 274 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Uvea (Wallis Island), Ile Futuna (Futuna Island), Ile Alofi, and 20 islets |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
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 government is coping with a rise in violent crime. | The Futuna island group was discovered by the Dutch in 1616 and Wallis by the British in 1767, but it was the French who declared a protectorate over the islands in 1842. In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory. |
Birth rate | 13.07 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $6.415 billion
expenditures: $6.214 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $29,730
expenditures: $31,330 (1998 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) |
name: Mata-Utu (on Ile Uvea)
geographic coordinates: 13 57 S, 171 56 W time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to December) | tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year (80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C |
Coastline | 362 km | 129 km |
Constitution | 1 August 1976 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago |
conventional long form: Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands
conventional short form: Wallis and Futuna local long form: Territoire des Iles Wallis et Futuna local short form: Wallis et Futuna |
Death rate | 10.76 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $3.025 billion (31 December 2007 est.) | $3.67 million $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France |
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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | in April 2006, the Permanent Court of Arbitration issued a decision that delimited a maritime boundary with Trinidad and Tobago and compelled Barbados to enter a fishing agreement that limited Barbadian fishermen's catches of flying fish in Trinidad and Tobago's exclusive economic zone; in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration under UNCLOS challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters; Guyana has also expressed its intention to include itself in the arbitration as the Trinidad and Tobago-Venezuela maritime boundary may extend into its waters as well | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $200,000 (2007 est.) | assistance from France |
Economy - overview | Trinidad and Tobago has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses and has one of the highest growth rates and per capita incomes in Latin America. Recent growth has been fueled by investments in liquefied natural gas (LNG), petrochemicals, and steel. Additional petrochemical, aluminum, and plastics projects are in various stages of planning. Trinidad and Tobago is the leading Caribbean producer of oil and gas, and its economy is heavily dependent upon these resources but it also supplies manufactured goods, notably food and beverages, as well as cement to the Caribbean region. Oil and gas account for about 40% of GDP and 80% of exports, but only 5% of employment. The country is also a regional financial center, and tourism is a growing sector, although it is not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The economy benefits from a growing trade surplus. Economic growth reached 12.6% in 2006 and 5.5% in 2007 as prices for oil, petrochemicals, and LNG remained high, and as foreign direct investment continued to grow to support expanded capacity in the energy sector. | The economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with about 80% labor force earnings from agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French Government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.083 billion kWh (2007) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 7.704 billion kWh (2007) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Singavi 765 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion | deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain) largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion; there are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Indian (South Asian) 40%, African 37.5%, mixed 20.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 0.8% (2000 census) | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.3275 (2007), 6.3107 (2006), 6.2842 (2005), 6.299 (2004), 6.2951 (2003) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 95.89 (2005), 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001) |
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 on 11 February 2008 (next to be held by February 2013); the president usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives election results: George Maxwell RICHARDS reelected president; percent of electoral college vote - NA |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Administrator Richard DIDIER (since 19 July 2006)
head of government: President of the Territorial Assembly Patalione KANIMOA (since January 2001) cabinet: Council of the Territory consists of three kings and three members appointed by the high administrator on the advice of the Territorial Assembly note: there are three traditional kings with limited powers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high administrator appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the Territorial Government and the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
Exports | 202,100 bbl/day (2004) | $47,450 f.o.b. (2004) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, liquefied natural gas (LNG), methanol, ammonia, urea, steel products, beverages, cereal and cereal products, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus fruit, vegetables, flowers | copra, chemicals, construction materials |
Exports - partners | US 59.8%, Spain 5.3%, Jamaica 5.2% (2006) | Italy 40%, Croatia 15%, US 14%, Denmark 13% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side to the lower fly side | unofficial, local flag has a red field with four white isosceles triangles in the middle, representing the three native kings of the islands and the French administrator; the apexes of the triangles are oriented inward and at right angles to each other; the flag of France, outlined in white on two sides, is in the upper hoist quadrant; the flag of France is the only official flag |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 0.6%
industry: 62% services: 37.4% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 61 00 W | 13 18 S, 176 12 W |
Geography - note | Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt | both island groups have fringing reefs |
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 | 91,780 bbl/day (2004) | $61.17 million f.o.b. (2004) |
Imports - commodities | mineral fuels, lubricants, machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals, grain | chemicals, machinery, passenger ships, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US 30.6%, Brazil 12%, Venezuela 6.8%, Gabon 4.7%, Colombia 4.6% (2006) | France 97%, Australia 2%, NZ 1% (2004) |
Independence | 31 August 1962 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles | copra, handicrafts, fishing, lumber |
Infant mortality rate | total: 24.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.6% (2007 est.) | 2.8% NA% |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | SPC, UPU |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (2003) | NA |
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 | none; justice generally administered under French law by the high administrator, but the three traditional kings administer customary law and there is a magistrate in Mata-Utu |
Labor force | 615,400 (2007 est.) | NA 3,104 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 12.9%, construction and utilities 17.5%, services 65.6% (2006 est.) | agriculture: 80%
industry: 4% services: 16% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.62%
permanent crops: 9.16% other: 76.22% (2005) |
arable land: 7.14%
permanent crops: 35.71% other: 57.15% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese | Wallisian 58.9% (indigenous Polynesian language), Futunian 30.1%, French 10.8%, other 0.2% (2003 census) |
Legal system | based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French legal system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; 16 members appointed by the ruling party, nine by the President, six by the opposition party to serve a maximum term of five years) and the House of Representatives (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held on 5 November 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - PNM 46%, UNC 29.7%; seats by party - PNM 26, UNC 15 note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly with 12 members serving four-year terms; last election held in January 2005; seats by party - PNM 11, DAC 1 |
unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (20 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 March 2002 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR and affiliates 13, Socialists and affiliates 7 note: Wallis and Futuna elects one senator to the French Senate and one deputy to the French National Assembly; French Senate - elections last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held by September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats - RPR (now UMP) 1; French National Assembly - elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held by in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats - RPR (UMP) 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 66.85 years
male: 65.87 years female: 67.87 years (2007 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 50% male: 50% female: 50% (1969 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 9 ships (1000 GRT or over) 27,599 GRT/8,081 DWT
by type: passenger 2, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 1 (US 1) registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1, unknown 1) (2007) |
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 110,428 GRT/56,830 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, passenger 7 foreign-owned: 8 (France 5, French Polynesia 2, US 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force: Ground Force, Coast Guard (includes air wing) (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.3% (2006) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 31 August (1962) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian |
noun: Wallisian(s), Futunan(s), or Wallis and Futuna Islanders
adjective: Wallisian, Futunan, or Wallis and Futuna Islander |
Natural hazards | outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms | NA |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, asphalt | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -11.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 245 km; gas 1,320 km; oil 563 km (2007) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Congress of the People [Winston DOOKERAN]; Democratic Action Congress or DAC [Hochoy CHARLES] (only active in Tobago); Democratic National Alliance or DNA [Gerald YETMING] (coalition of NAR, DDPT, MND); Movement for National Development or MND [Garvin NICHOLAS]; National Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Dr. Carson CHARLES]; People's National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; United National Congress or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY] | Lua Kae Tahi (Giscardians); Mouvement des Radicaux de Gauche or MRG; Rally for the Republic or RPR (UMP) [Clovis LOGOLOGOFOLAU]; Socialist Party or PS; Taumu'a Lelei [Soane Muni UHILA]; Union Populaire Locale or UPL [Falakiko GATA]; Union Pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Jamaat-al Muslimeen [Yasin BAKR] | NA |
Population | 1,056,608 (July 2007 est.) | 16,025 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 17% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.883% (2007 est.) | NA |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 18, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 26%, Hindu 22.5%, Anglican 7.8%, Baptist 7.2%, Pentecostal 6.8%, Muslim 5.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 4%, other Christian 5.8%, other 10.8%, unspecified 1.4%, none 1.9% (2000 census) | Roman Catholic 99%, other 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.058 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.109 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.809 male(s)/female total population: 1.068 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
- |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent international service; good local service
domestic: mobile-cellular teledensity exceeds 150 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 1-868; submarine cable systems provide connectivity to US and parts of the Caribbean and South America; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Barbados and Guyana |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 681 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 325,500 (2006) | 1,900 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.655 million (2006) | 0 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (2005) | 2 (2000) |
Terrain | mostly plains with some hills and low mountains | volcanic origin; low hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.74 children born/woman (2007 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 6% (2007 est.) | 15.2% NA% |