United Kingdom (2005) | Togo (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | England - 47 boroughs, 36 counties, 29 London boroughs, 12 cities and boroughs, 10 districts, 12 cities, 3 royal boroughs
boroughs: Barnsley, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, Bury, Calderdale, Darlington, Doncaster, Dudley, Gateshead, Halton, Hartlepool, Kirklees, Knowsley, Luton, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, North Tyneside, Oldham, Poole, Reading, Redcar and Cleveland, Rochdale, Rotherham, Sandwell, Sefton, Slough, Solihull, Southend-on-Sea, South Tyneside, St. Helens, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees, Swindon, Tameside, Thurrock, Torbay, Trafford, Walsall, Warrington, Wigan, Wirral, Wolverhampton counties: Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Cornwall, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Devon, Dorset, Durham, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Northumberland, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Shropshire, Somerset, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Surrey, Warwickshire, West Sussex, Wiltshire, Worcestershire London boroughs: Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Camden, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Islington, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond upon Thames, Southwark, Sutton, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth cities and boroughs: Birmingham, Bradford, Coventry, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne, Salford, Sheffield, Sunderland, Wakefield, Westminster districts: Bath and North East Somerset, East Riding of Yorkshire, North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, North Somerset, Rutland, South Gloucestershire, Telford and Wrekin, West Berkshire, Wokingham cities: City of Bristol, Derby, City of Kingston upon Hull, Leicester, City of London, Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, York royal boroughs: Kensington and Chelsea, Kingston upon Thames, Windsor and Maidenhead Northern Ireland - 24 districts, 2 cities, 6 counties districts: Antrim, Ards, Armagh, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge, Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon, Down, Dungannon, Fermanagh, Larne, Limavady, Lisburn, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh, Strabane cities: Belfast, Derry counties: County Antrim, County Armagh, County Down, County Fermanagh, County Londonderry, County Tyrone Scotland - 32 council areas: Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, The Scottish Borders, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow City, Highland, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Moray, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, Renfrewshire, Shetland Islands, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, Stirling, West Dunbartonshire, Eilean Siar (Western Isles), West Lothian; Wales - 11 county boroughs, 9 counties, 2 cities and counties county boroughs: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Conwy, Gwynedd, Merthyr Tydfil, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Torfaen, Wrexham counties: Isle of Anglesey, Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Monmouthshire, Pembrokeshire, Powys, The Vale of Glamorgan cities and counties: Cardiff, Swansea |
5 regions (regions, singular - region); De La Kara, Des Plateaux, Des Savanes, Centrale, Maritime |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 17.7% (male 5,490,592/female 5,229,691)
15-64 years: 66.5% (male 20,329,272/female 19,855,862) 65 years and over: 15.8% (male 4,063,357/female 5,472,683) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 45.1% (male 1,195,052; female 1,187,014)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 1,351,345; female 1,420,617) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 56,270; female 75,203) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish | coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish |
Airports | 471 (2004 est.) | 9 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 334
over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 150 914 to 1,523 m: 86 under 914 m: 57 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 137
2438 to 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 112 (2004 est.) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 244,820 sq km
land: 241,590 sq km water: 3,230 sq km note: includes Rockall and Shetland Islands |
total: 56,785 sq km
land: 54,385 sq km water: 2,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
Background | Great Britain, the dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, a founding member of NATO, and of the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy; it currently is weighing the degree of its integration with continental Europe. A member of the EU, it chose to remain outside the Economic and Monetary Union for the time being. Constitutional reform is also a significant issue in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1999, but the latter is suspended due to bickering over the peace process. | French Togoland became Togo in 1960. General Gnassingbe EYADEMA, installed as military ruler in 1967, is Africa's longest-serving head of state. Despite the facade of multiparty elections instituted in the early 1990s, the government continues to be dominated by President EYADEMA, whose Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party has maintained power almost continually since 1967. In addition, Togo has come under fire from international organizations for human rights abuses and is plagued by political unrest. Most bilateral and multilateral aid to Togo remains frozen. |
Birth rate | 10.78 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 36.11 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $834.9 billion
expenditures: $896.7 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $232 million
expenditures: $252 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | London | Lome |
Climate | temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 12,429 km | 56 km |
Constitution | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice | multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; note - Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales
conventional short form: United Kingdom abbreviation: UK |
conventional long form: Togolese Republic
conventional short form: Togo local long form: Republique Togolaise local short form: none former: French Togoland |
Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 10.18 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 11.3 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.71 trillion (2003) | $1.5 billion (1999) (1999) |
Dependent areas | Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena and Ascension, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires David T. JOHNSON
embassy: 24/31 Grosvenor Square, London, W1A 1AE mailing address: PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040 telephone: [44] (0) 20 7499-9000 FAX: [44] (0) 20 7629-9124 consulate(s) general: Belfast, Edinburgh |
chief of mission: Ambassador Karl HOFMANN
embassy: Angle Rue Kouenou and Rue 15 Beniglato, Lome mailing address: B. P. 852, Lome telephone: [228] 221 29 91 through 221 29 94 FAX: [228] 221 79 52 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David G. MANNING
chancery: 3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-6500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-7870 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Dallas, Denver, Miami, and Seattle |
chief of mission: Ambassador Akoussoulelou BODJONA
chancery: 2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4212 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3190 |
Disputes - international | in 2003, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants since their eviction in 1965; most Chagosians reside in Mauritius, and in 2001 were granted UK citizenship but no right to patriation in the UK; UK rejects sovereignty talks requested by Argentina, which still claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm | Benin accuses Togo of moving boundary markers and stationing troops in its territory |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $4.2 billion (2004) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $201.1 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | The UK, a leading trading power and financial center, is one of the quartet of trillion dollar economies of Western Europe. Over the past two decades the government has greatly reduced public ownership and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards, producing about 60% of food needs with less than 2% of the labor force. The UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves; primary energy production accounts for 10% of GDP, one of the highest shares of any industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP while industry continues to decline in importance. GDP growth slipped in 2001-03 as the global downturn, the high value of the pound, and the bursting of the "new economy" bubble hurt manufacturing and exports. Output recovered in 2004, to 3.2% growth. The economy is one of the strongest in Europe; inflation, interest rates, and unemployment remain low. The relatively good economic performance has complicated the BLAIR government's efforts to make a case for Britain to join the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Critics point out that the economy is doing well outside of EMU, and they cite public opinion polls that continue to show a majority of Britons opposed to the euro. Meantime, the government has been speeding up the improvement of education, transport, and health services, at a cost in higher taxes. | 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 significant cash crop despite falling prices on the world market. Political unrest, including private and public sector strikes throughout 1992 and 1993, jeopardized the reform program, shrunk the tax base, and disrupted vital economic activity. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of the XOF currency by 50% provided an important impetus to renewed structural adjustment. In the industrial sector, phosphate mining is by far the most important activity. Togo is the world's fourth largest producer, and geological advantages keep production costs low. The recently privatized mining operation, Office Togolais des Phosphates (OTP), is slowly recovering from a steep fall in prices in the early 1990's, but continues to face the challenge of tough foreign competition, exacerbated by weakening demand. Togo serves as a regional commercial and trade center. It continues to expand its duty-free export-processing zone (EPZ), launched in 1989, which has attracted enterprises from France, Italy, Scandinavia, the US, India, and China and created jobs for Togolese nationals. 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 stalled. Progress depends on following through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress towards legislative elections, and possible downsizing of the military, on which the regime has depended to stay in place. Lack of large-scale foreign aid, deterioration of the financial sector, energy shortages, and depressed commodity prices continue to constrain economic growth. The takeover of the national power company by a Franco-Canadian consortium in 2000 should ease the energy crisis. |
Electricity - consumption | 337.4 billion kWh (2003) | 525.21 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 2.959 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 5.119 billion kWh (2003) | 435 million kWh
note: electricity supplied by Ghana (2000) |
Electricity - production | 395.9 billion kWh (2003) | 97 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 98%
hydro: 2% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: The Fens -4 m
highest point: Ben Nevis 1,343 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Agou 986 m |
Environment - current issues | continues to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (has met Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5% reduction from 1990 levels and intends to meet the legally binding target and move towards a domestic goal of a 20% cut in emissions by 2010); by 2005 the government aims to reduce the amount of industrial and commercial waste disposed of in landfill sites to 85% of 1998 levels and to recycle or compost at least 25% of household waste, increasing to 33% by 2015; between 1998-99 and 1999-2000, household recycling increased from 8.8% to 10.3% | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | white (English 83.6%, Scottish 8.6%, Welsh 4.9%, Northern Irish 2.9%) 92.1%, black 2%, Indian 1.8%, Pakistani 1.3%, mixed 1.2%, other 1.6% (2001 census) | native African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1% |
Exchange rates | British pounds per US dollar - 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001), 0.6609 (2000) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 741.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November 1948)
head of government: Prime Minister Anthony (Tony) BLAIR (since 2 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually the prime minister |
chief of state: President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967)
head of government: Prime Minister Koffi SAMA (since 29 June 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1998 (next to be held June 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Gnassingbe EYADEMA reelected president; percent of vote - Gnassingbe EYADEMA 52.13%, Gilchrist OLYMPIO 34.12%, other 13.75% |
Exports | 1.498 million bbl/day (2001) | $306 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco | cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa |
Exports - partners | US 15.3%, Germany 10.8%, France 9.2%, Ireland 6.8%, Netherlands 6%, Belgium 5.1%, Spain 4.5%, Italy 4.2% (2004) | Benin 12%, Nigeria 9%, Belgium 5%, Ghana 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 6 April - 5 April | calendar year |
Flag description | blue field with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland), which is superimposed on the diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); properly known as the Union Flag, but commonly called the Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the Blue Ensign) have been the basis for a number of other flags including other Commonwealth countries and their constituent states or provinces, as well as British overseas territories | 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 |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $7.6 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 26.3% services: 72.7% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 42%
industry: 21% services: 37% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $29,600 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.2% (2004 est.) | 2.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 54 00 N, 2 00 W | 8 00 N, 1 10 E |
Geography - note | lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km from France and now linked by tunnel under the English Channel; because of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km from tidal waters | the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna |
Heliports | 11 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 392,931 km
paved: 392,931 km (including 3,431 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2003) |
total: 7,520 km
paved: 2,376 km unpaved: 5,144 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 28.5% (1999) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | producer of limited amounts of synthetic drugs and synthetic precursor chemicals; major consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and synthetic drugs; money-laundering center | transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem |
Imports | 1.084 million bbl/day (2003) | $420 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Germany 13%, US 9.3%, France 7.4%, Netherlands 6.6%, Belgium 4.9%, China 4.3%, Italy 4.3% (2004) | Ghana 26%, France 11%, China 7%, Cote d'Ivoire 7% (2000) |
Independence | England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th century; the union between England and Wales, begun in 1284 with the Statute of Rhuddlan, was not formalized until 1536 with an Act of Union; in another Act of Union in 1707, England and Scotland agreed to permanently join as Great Britain; the legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927 | 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.9% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods | phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement; handicrafts, textiles, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
69.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.4% (2004 est.) | 2.3% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, C, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 3 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 1,080 sq km (1998 est.) | 70 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | House of Lords (highest court of appeal; several Lords of Appeal in Ordinary are appointed by the monarch for life); Supreme Courts of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland (comprising the Courts of Appeal, the High Courts of Justice, and the Crown Courts); Scotland's Court of Session and Court of the Justiciary | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | 29.78 million (2004 est.) | 1.74 million (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.5%, industry 19.1%, services 79.5% (2004) | agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 360 km
border countries: Ireland 360 km |
total: 1,647 km
border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km |
Land use | arable land: 23.46%
permanent crops: 0.21% other: 76.33% (2001) |
arable land: 41.37%
permanent crops: 1.84% other: 56.79% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland) | 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) |
Legal system | common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences; has judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | French-based court system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament comprised of House of Lords (consists of approximately 500 life peers, 92 hereditary peers and 26 clergy) and House of Commons (646 seats since 2005 elections; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier)
elections: House of Lords - no elections (note - in 1999, as provided by the House of Lords Act, elections were held in the House of Lords to determine the 92 hereditary peers who would remain there; pending further reforms, elections are held only as vacancies in the hereditary peerage arise); House of Commons - last held 5 May 2005 (next to be held by May 2010) election results: House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Labor 35.2%, Conservative 32.3%, Liberal Democrats 22%, other 10.5%; seats by party - Labor 356, Conservative 197, Liberal Democrat 62, other 31; note - as of 30 September 2005 the seats by party - Labor 354, Conservative 196, Liberal Democrat 62, other 34 note: in 1998 elections were held for a Northern Ireland Assembly (because of unresolved disputes among existing parties, the transfer of power from London to Northern Ireland came only at the end of 1999 and has been suspended four times the latest occurring in October 2002); in 1999 there were elections for a new Scottish Parliament and a new Welsh Assembly |
unicameral National Assembly (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 October 2002 (next NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPT 72, RSD 3, UDPS 2, Juvento 2, MOCEP 1, independents 1 note: two opposition parties boycotted the election, the Union of the Forces for Change, and the Action Committee for Renewal |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.38 years
male: 75.94 years female: 80.96 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 54.02 years
male: 52.03 years female: 56.07 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling
total population: 99% (2000 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 51.7% male: 67% female: 37% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm continental shelf: as defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed upon boundaries |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 30 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 429 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 9,181,284 GRT/9,566,275 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 18, cargo 55, chemical tanker 48, container 134, liquefied gas 11, passenger 12, passenger/cargo 64, petroleum tanker 40, refrigerated cargo 19, roll on/roll off 25, vehicle carrier 3 foreign-owned: 202 (Australia 3, Canada 15, Denmark 38, Finland 2, Germany 56, Greece 4, Ireland 1, Italy 9, Netherlands 12, Norway 28, South Africa 4, Sweden 15, Taiwan 7, United States 8) registered in other countries: 446 (2005) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,603 GRT/2,800 DWT
ships by type: specialized tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Greece 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Royal Navy (includes Royal Marines), Royal Air Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $42,836.5 million (2003) | $21.9 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.4% (2003) | 1.8% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,220,758 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 640,280 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | the UK does not celebrate one particular national holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Briton(s), British (collective plural)
adjective: British |
noun: Togolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Togolese |
Natural hazards | winter windstorms; floods | hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand, slate, arable land | phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land |
Net migration rate | 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 370 km; gas 21,446 km; liquid petroleum gas 59 km; oil 6,420 km; oil/gas/water 63 km; refined products 4,474 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Conservative and Unionist Party [Michael HOWARD]; Democratic Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [Rev. Ian PAISLEY]; Labor Party [Anthony (Tony) BLAIR]; Liberal Democrats [Charles KENNEDY]; Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru) [Dafydd IWAN]; Scottish National Party or SNP [Alex SALMOND]; Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland) [Gerry ADAMS]; Social Democratic and Labor Party or SDLP (Northern Ireland) [Mark DURKAN]; Ulster Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [Sir Reg EMPEY] | Action Committee for Renewal or CAR [Yawovi AGBOYIBO]; Coordination des Forces Nouvelles or CFN [Joseph KOFFIGOH]; Democratic Convention of African Peoples or CDPA [Leopold GNININVI]; Party for Democracy and Renewal or PDR [Zarifou AYEVA]; Patriotic Pan-African Convergence or CPP [Edem KODJO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA]; Union of Forces for Change or UFC [Gilchrist OLYMPIO (in exile), Jean Pierre FABRE, general secretary in Togo]; Union of Independent Liberals or ULI [Jacques AMOUZOU]
note: Rally of the Togolese People or RPT, led by President EYADEMA, was the only party until the formation of multiple parties was legalized 12 April 1991 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament; Confederation of British Industry; National Farmers' Union; Trades Union Congress | NA |
Population | 60,441,457 (July 2005 est.) | 5,285,501
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 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 17% (2002 est.) | 32% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.28% (2005 est.) | 2.48% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Hound Point, Immingham, Milford Haven, Liverpool, London, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport | Kpeme, Lome |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 940,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 17,274 km
standard gauge: 16,814 km 1.435-m gauge (5,296 km electrified) broad gauge: 460 km 1.600-m gauge (in Northern Ireland) (2004) |
total: 525 km
narrow gauge: 525 km 1.000-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1% (2001 census) | indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment: technologically advanced domestic and international system
domestic: equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems international: country code - 44; 40 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat; at least 8 large international switching centers |
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; cellular system has capacity of 10,000 telephones international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Symphonie |
Telephones - main lines in use | 34.898 million (2002) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 49.677 million (2002) | 2,995 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995) | 3 (plus two repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast | gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes |
Total fertility rate | 1.66 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 5.14 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.8% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 3,200 km (620 km used for commerce) (2004) | 50 km (Mono river) |