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Compare Virgin Islands (2003) - Benin (2007)
Compare Virgin Islands (2003) z Benin (2007)
| Virgin Islands (2003) | Benin (2007) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three islands at the second order; Saint Croix, Saint John, Saint Thomas | 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 26% (male 16,685; female 15,794)
15-64 years: 64.4% (male 36,241; female 44,157) 65 years and over: 9.5% (male 5,078; female 6,823) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables, sorghum; Senepol cattle | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock |
| Airports | 2 (2002) | 5 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
| Area | total: 352 sq km
land: 349 sq km water: 3 sq km |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
| Background | During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two territorial units, one English and the other Danish. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish portion, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848. | 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. KEREKOU stepped down at the end of his second term in 2006 and was succeeded by Thomas YAYI Boni, a political outsider and independent. |
| Birth rate | 15.8 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $364.4 million
expenditures: $364.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.) |
revenues: $786 million
expenditures: $1.024 billion (2006 est.) |
| Capital | Charlotte Amalie | name: Porto-Novo (official capital)
geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government) |
| Climate | subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
| Coastline | 188 km | 121 km |
| Constitution | Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954 | adopted by referendum 2 December 1990 |
| Country name | conventional long form: United States Virgin Islands
conventional short form: Virgin Islands former: Danish West Indies |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
| Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
| Death rate | 5.68 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $NA | $1.6 billion (2000) |
| Dependency status | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between the Virgin Islands and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Gayleatha B. BROWN
embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 21-30-06-50 FAX: [229] 21-30-06-70 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | 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 remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; Benin accused Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin, but border relations remain strained by rival gang clashes; Benin and Togo announced plans in 2006 to construct a joint hydroelectric dam on the Mona River at the southern end of the border |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $349.1 million (2005) |
| Economy - overview | Tourism is the primary economic activity, accounting for more than 70% of GDP and 70% of employment. The islands normally host 2 million visitors a year. The manufacturing sector consists of petroleum refining, textiles, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and watch assembly. The agricultural sector is small, with most food being imported. International business and financial services are a small but growing component of the economy. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at Saint Croix. The islands are subject to substantial damage from storms. The government is working to improve fiscal discipline, support construction projects in the private sector, expand tourist facilities, reduce crime, and protect the environment. | The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past six years, but rapid population growth 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. Specific projects to improve the business climate by reforms to the land tenure system, the commercial justice system, and the financial sector were included in Benin's $307 million Millennium Challenge Account grant signed in February 2006. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. Benin continues to be hurt by Nigerian trade protection that bans imports of a growing list of products from Benin and elsewhere, which has resulted in increased smuggling and criminality in the border region. |
| Electricity - consumption | 957.9 million kWh (2001) | 587 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 595 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 1.03 billion kWh (2001) | 105 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain 474 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
| Environment - current issues | lack of natural freshwater resources | 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, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | black 78%, white 10%, other 12%
note: West Indian 81% (49% born in the Virgin Islands and 32% born elsewhere in the West Indies), US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 4%, other 2% |
Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census) |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (Since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (since 5 January 1999) and Lieutenant Governor Vargrave RICHARDS (since NA January 2003) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2006) election results: Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL reelected governor; percent of vote - Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (Democrat) 50.5%, John de JONGH 24.4% |
chief of state: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Thomas YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2011) election results: Thomas YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - Thomas YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products | cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood |
| Exports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | China 20.9%, Indonesia 7.7%, India 7%, Netherlands 6.2%, Niger 5.7%, Togo 4.6%, Nigeria 4.3% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
| Flag description | white, with a modified US coat of arms in the center between the large blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows a yellow eagle holding an olive branch in one talon and three arrows in the other with a superimposed shield of vertical red and white stripes below a blue panel | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 32.8%
industry: 13.7% services: 53.5% (2006 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $19,000 (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 4% (2006 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 20 N, 64 50 W | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
| Geography - note | important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the Caribbean | sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
| Highways | total: 856 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: the only US possession where driving on the left side of the road is practiced (2000) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% (2003) |
| Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point used by Nigerian traffickers for narcotics destined for Western Europe; vulnerable to money laundering due to poorly enforced financial regulations |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials | foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products |
| Imports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | China 46.6%, France 7.5%, Thailand 6% (2006) |
| Independence | - | 1 August 1960 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 8.3% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics | textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1992) | 3.8% (2006 est.) |
| International organization participation | ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 50 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 120 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | US District Court of the Virgin Islands (under Third Circuit jurisdiction); Territorial Court (judges appointed by the governor for 10-year terms) | Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice |
| Labor force | 49,000 (2002 est.) | 3.211 million (1996) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1%, industry 20%, services 79% (1990 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: 15%
permanent crops: 6% other: 79% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 23.53%
permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005) |
| Languages | English (official), Spanish, Creole | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
| Legal system | based on US laws | based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Senate (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 8, ICM NA, no party affiliation NA note: the Virgin Islands elects one non-voting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); results - Donna M. CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSON (Democrat) reelected |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 March 2007 (next to be held by March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FCBE 35, ADD 20, PRD 10, other and independents 18 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.59 years
male: 74.73 years female: 82.68 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 53.44 years
male: 52.28 years female: 54.63 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 34.7% male: 47.9% female: 23.3% (2002 census) |
| Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
| Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
| Military branches | - | Benin Armed Forces: Ground Forces Command, Benin Navy, Benin People's Air Force (Force Aerienne Populaire de Benin, FAPB) (2007) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.7% (2006) |
| National holiday | Transfer Day (from Denmark to the US), 27 March (1917) | National Day, 1 August (1960) |
| Nationality | noun: Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: Virgin Islander |
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese |
| Natural hazards | several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
| Natural resources | sun, sand, sea, surf | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
| Net migration rate | 0.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Arturo WATLINGTON]; Independent Citizens' Movement or ICM [Usie RICHARDS]; Republican Party [Gary SPRAUVE] | Alliance for Dynamic Democracy or ADD [Nicephore SOGLO]; Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin or FCBE; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD; Key Force or FC; Movement for Development and Solidarity or MDS; Movement for Development by the Culture-Salute Party-Congress of People for Progress Alliance or Alliance MDC-PS-CPP; New Alliance or NA; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP; 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 | NA | NA |
| Population | 124,778 (July 2003 est.) | 8,078,314
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 33% (2001 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 1.02% (2003 est.) | 2.674% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Charlotte Amalie, Christiansted, Cruz Bay, Port Alucroix | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 11, shortwave 0 (2002) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000) |
| Railways | 0 km | total: 758 km
narrow gauge: 758 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
| Religions | Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7% | Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.82 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.87 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; note - indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: modern, uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay international: submarine cable and satellite communications; satellite earth stations - NA |
general assessment: inadequate; fixed-line network is almost saturated with fixed-line teledensity stuck at a meager 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of roughly 10 per 100 persons
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections; four mobile-cellular providers international: country code - 229; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 65,000 (1997) | 76,300 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,000 (1992) | 750,000 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 2 (2002) | 1 (2001) |
| Terrain | mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 4.9% (March 1999) | NA% |
| Waterways | none | 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005) |
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