West Bank (2004) | Mayotte (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 46.6% (male 39,927; female 39,628)
15-64 years: 51.7% (male 48,237; female 40,210) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 1,429; female 1,448) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products | vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), coffee, copra |
Airports | 3 (2003 est.) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | 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 |
total: 374 sq km
land: 374 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | 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. | Mayotte was ceded to France along with the other islands of the Comoros group in 1843. It was the only island in the archipelago that voted in 1974 to retain its link with France and forego independence. |
Birth rate | 33.21 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 43.59 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $676.6 million
expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (includes Gaza Strip) (2003 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $73 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1991 est.) |
Capital | - | Mamoutzou |
Climate | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters | tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 185.2 km |
Constitution | - | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte
conventional short form: Mayotte |
Currency | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 4.07 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.58 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | territorial collectivity of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Disputes - international | 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 | claimed by Comoros |
Economic aid - recipient | $2 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (2001-02 est.) | $107.7 million (1995); note - extensive French financial assistance |
Economy - overview | 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. | Economic activity is based primarily on the agricultural sector, including fishing and livestock raising. Mayotte is not self-sufficient and must import a large portion of its food requirements, mainly from France. The economy and future development of the island are heavily dependent on French financial assistance, an important supplement to GDP. Mayotte's remote location is an obstacle to the development of tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | NA kWh |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production | 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 | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Benara 660 m |
Environment - current issues | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment | NA |
Ethnic groups | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% | NA |
Exchange rates | 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) | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Jacques BROT (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Younoussa BAMANA (since NA 1977) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; president of the General Council elected by the members of the General Council for a six-year term |
Exports | $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip | $3.44 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Exports - commodities | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone | ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, copra, coconuts, coffee, cinnamon |
Exports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) | France 80%, Comoros 15%, Reunion |
Fiscal year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) | calendar year |
Flag description | - | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.7 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $85 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $600 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -22% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 35 15 E | 12 50 S, 45 10 E |
Geography - note | 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.) | part of Comoro Archipelago; 18 islands |
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.) |
total: 93 km
paved: 72 km unpaved: 21 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip | $141.3 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Imports - commodities | food, consumer goods, construction materials | food, machinery and equipment, transportation equipment, metals, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) | France 66%, Africa 14%, Southeast Asia 11% (1997) |
Independence | - | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | 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 | newly created lobster and shrimp industry, construction |
Infant mortality rate | 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.) |
67.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | - | FZ |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | NA |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel |
Labor force | NA | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 13%, industry 21%, services 66% (1996) | - |
Land boundaries | total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.9%
permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001) |
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA% other: NA% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) | Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population |
Legal system | - | French law |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 7 October 2000 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: Mayotte elects one member of the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Mayotte also elects one member to the French National Assembly; elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held as a special election on NA June 2005); results - percent of vote by party - UMP-RPR 55.08%, UDF 44.92%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.88 years
male: 71.14 years female: 74.72 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 60.21 years
male: 58.12 years female: 62.37 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Middle East, west of Jordan | Southern Africa, island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from northern Madagascar to northern Mozambique |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France; small contingent of French forces stationed on the island |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | - | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun: Mahorais (singular and plural)
adjective: Mahoran |
Natural hazards | droughts | cyclones during rainy season |
Natural resources | arable land | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 2.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Democratic Front or FD [Youssouf MOUSSA]; Mahoran Popular Movement or MPM [Younoussa BAMANA]; Federation of Mahorans or RPR [Moustoifa MOHAMED]; Movement for Department Status Mayotte or MDM [Younoussa BEN ALI]; Socialist Party or PS (local branch of French Parti Socialiste) [Ibrahim ABUBACAR]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Henri JEAN-BAPTISTE]; note - may no longer be in existence |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 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.) |
170,879 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.21% (2004 est.) | 4.41% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Dzaoudzi |
Radio broadcast stations | 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) |
AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | - | NA |
Railways | - | 0 km (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% | Muslim 97%, Christian (mostly Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.2 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment: small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications
domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communications to Comoros (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 301,600 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2002) | 12,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 480,000 (cellular subscribers in both West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2003) | 0 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 3 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east | generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic peaks |
Total fertility rate | 4.52 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 6.15 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (includes Gaza Strip) (2002 est.) | 45% (1997) (1997) |
Waterways | - | none |