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Compare West Bank (2005) - Belize (2008)

Compare West Bank (2005) z Belize (2008)

 West Bank (2005)Belize (2008)
 West BankBelize
Administrative divisions - 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo
Age structure 0-14 years: 43.4% (male 530,197/female 504,794)


15-64 years: 53.2% (male 649,610/female 619,335)


65 years and over: 3.4% (male 34,803/female 46,876) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 38.9% (male 58,459/female 56,183)


15-64 years: 57.5% (male 85,686/female 83,717)


65 years and over: 3.5% (male 4,979/female 5,361) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products bananas, cacao, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments
Airports 3 (2004 est.) 44 (2007)
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: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 40


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 12


under 914 m: 27 (2007)
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: 22,966 sq km


land: 22,806 sq km


water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Delaware slightly smaller than Massachusetts
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. Belize was the site of several Mayan city states until their decline at the end of the first millennium A.D. The British and Spanish disputed the region in the 17th and 18th centuries; it formally became the colony of British Honduras in 1854. Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. Current concerns include an unsustainable foreign debt, high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, growing urban crime, and increasing incidences of HIV/AIDS.
Birth rate 32.37 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 28.34 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $676.6 million


expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA; note - these budget data include Gaza Strip (2003)
revenues: $328.5 million


expenditures: $365 million (2007 est.)
Capital - name: Belmopan


geographic coordinates: 17 15 N, 88 46 W


time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 386 km
Constitution - 21 September 1981
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: West Bank
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Belize


former: British Honduras
Death rate 3.99 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 5.76 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) $1.2 billion (June 2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US - chief of mission: Ambassador Robert J. DIETER


embassy: Floral Park Road, Belmopan City, Cayo District


mailing address: P.O. Box 497, Belmopan City, Cayo District, Belize


telephone: [501] 822-4011


FAX: [501] 822-4012
Diplomatic representation in the US - chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)


chancery: 2535 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 332-9636


FAX: [1] (202) 332-6888


consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
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; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel announced its intention to pull out settlers and withdraw from four settlements in the northern West Bank in 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region annual ministerial meetings under the OAS-initiated Agreement on the Framework for Negotiations and Confidence Building Measures continue to address Guatemalan land and maritime claims in Belize and Caribbean Sea; the Line of Adjacency created under the 2002 Differendum serves in lieu of the contiguous international boundary to control squatting in the sparsely inhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; Honduras claims Belizean-administered Sapodilla Cays in its constitution but agreed to a joint ecological park under the Differendum
Economic aid - recipient $2 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.) $12.91 million (2005)
Economy - overview The West Bank - the larger of the two areas under the Palestine Authority - has experienced a general decline in economic growth and a degradation in economic conditions made worse since the second intifadah began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely the result of the Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestine Authority areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant, the disruption of administrative structure, and widespread business closures. Including the Gaza Strip, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israeli settlements, or in joint industrial zones, have lost their jobs. International aid of $2 billion to the West Bank and Gaza strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. Meanwhile, unemployment has continued at more than half the labor force. ARAFAT's death in 2004 leaves open more political options that could affect the economy. In this small, essentially private-enterprise economy, tourism is the number one foreign exchange earner followed by exports of marine products, citrus, cane sugar, bananas, and garments. The government's expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, initiated in September 1998, led to sturdy GDP growth averaging nearly 4% in 1999-2007. Oil discoveries in 2006 bolstered the economic growth in 2006 and 2007. Major concerns continue to be the sizable trade deficit and unsustainable foreign debt. In February 2007, the government restructured nearly all of its public external commercial debt, which will reduce interest payments and create the liquidity relief needed for an increase in public spending in the run-up to the March 2008 elections. A key short-term objective remains the reduction of poverty with the help of international donors.
Electricity - consumption NA kWh 162.8 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports NA kWh 0 kWh (2005)
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 200 million kWh (2007 est.)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m
Environment - current issues adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal
Environment - international agreements - party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%
Exchange rates new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000) Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2007), 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003)
Executive branch - chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG, Sr. (since 17 November 1993)


head of government: Prime Minister Dean BARROW (since 8 February 2008); Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar VEGA (since 12 February 2008)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports $205 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip (2002) 1,960 bbl/day (2006)
Exports - commodities olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood
Exports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) US 33.9%, UK 33.6%, Cote d'Ivoire 3.7% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year (since 1 January 1992) 1 April - 31 March
Flag description - blue with a narrow red stripe along the top and the bottom edges; centered is a large white disk bearing the coat of arms; the coat of arms features a shield flanked by two workers in front of a mahogany tree with the related motto SUB UMBRA FLOREO (I Flourish in the Shade) on a scroll at the bottom, all encircled by a green garland
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 9%


industry: 28%


services: 63%


note: includes Gaza Strip (2002 est.)
agriculture: 21.3%


industry: 13.7%


services: 65% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2003 est.) 3% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 32 00 N, 35 15 E 17 15 N, 88 45 W
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.) only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean
Highways total: 4,500 km


paved: 2,700 km


unpaved: 1,800 km


note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements (1997 est.)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis, primarily for local consumption; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trafficking and offshore sector
Imports $1.5 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip (2002) 6,754 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities food, consumer goods, construction materials machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco
Imports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000) US 35.7%, Mexico 13%, Cuba 7.7%, Guatemala 7.2%, China 4.3% (2006)
Independence - 21 September 1981 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate NA 0.5% (2007 est.)
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 garment production, food processing, tourism, construction, oil
Infant mortality rate total: 19.62 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 21.66 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 24.38 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 27.43 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 21.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) 2.8% (2007 est.)
International organization participation - ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land NA sq km 30 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch - Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister)
Labor force 364,000 (2004) 113,000


note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2004 est.) agriculture: 22.5%


industry: 15.2%


services: 62.3% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries total: 404 km


border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
total: 516 km


border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km
Land use arable land: 16.9%


permanent crops: 18.97%


other: 64.13% (2001)
arable land: 3.05%


permanent crops: 1.39%


other: 95.56% (2005)
Languages Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) Spanish 46%, Creole 32.9%, Mayan dialects 8.9%, English 3.9% (official), Garifuna 3.4% (Carib), German 3.3%, other 1.4%, unknown 0.2% (2000 census)
Legal system - English law
Legislative branch - bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (12 seats; members appointed by the governor general - 6 on the advice of the prime minister, 3 on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and 1 each on the advice of the Belize Council of Churches and Evangelical Association of Churches, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Belize Better Business Bureau, and the National Trade Union Congress and the Civil Society Steering Committee; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives (31 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: House of Representatives - last held 6 February 2008 (next to be held in 2013)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDP 25, PUP 6
Life expectancy at birth total population: 73.08 years


male: 71.33 years


female: 74.95 years (2005 est.)
total population: 68.25 years


male: 66.44 years


female: 70.16 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 91.9%


male: 96.3%


female: 87.4% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 76.9%


male: 76.7%


female: 77.1% (2000 census)
Location Middle East, west of Jordan Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico
Map references Middle East Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine - total: 261 ships (1000 GRT or over) 940,852 GRT/1,275,111 DWT


by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 36, cargo 190, chemical tanker 5, container 5, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1


foreign-owned: 217 (China 107, Croatia 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 1, Hong Kong 5, Iceland 1, Italy 4, Japan 2, South Korea 4, Latvia 14, Norway 3, Peru 1, Philippines 1, Russia 39, Singapore 3, Spain 2, Turkey 11, Ukraine 10, UAE 4, US 3) (2007)
Military branches - Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 1.4% (2006)
National holiday - Independence Day, 21 September (1981)
Nationality noun: NA


adjective: NA
noun: Belizean(s)


adjective: Belizean
Natural hazards droughts frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south)
Natural resources arable land arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower
Net migration rate 2.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders - National Alliance for Belizean Rights or NABR; National Reform Party or NRP [Cornelius DUECK]; People's National Party or PNP [Wil MAHEIA]; People's United Party or PUP [Said MUSA]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Dean BARROW]; Vision Inspired by the People or VIP [Paul MORGAN]; We the People Reform Movement or WTP [Hipolito BAUTISTA]
Political pressure groups and leaders - Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Gustavo PERERA]; Association of Concerned Belizeans or ACB [David VASQUEZ]; National Trade Union Congress of Belize or NTUC/B [Rene GOMEZ]
Population 2,385,615


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.)
294,385 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 59% (2004 est.) 33.5% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate 3.13% (2005 est.) 2.258% (2007 est.)
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 16, shortwave 0 (2006)
Religions Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Pentecostal 7.4%, Anglican 5.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Mennonite 4.1%, Methodist 3.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), other 14%, none 9.4% (2000)
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: 0.74 male(s)/female


total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.024 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.929 male(s)/female


total population: 1.027 male(s)/female (2007 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: above-average system; fixed-line teledensity of 12 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of about 40 per 100 persons


domestic: trunk network depends primarily on microwave radio relay


international: country code - 501; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station - 8 (Intelsat - 2, unknown - 6) (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 301,600 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2002) 33,900 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 480,000 (cellular subscribers in both West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2003) 118,300 (2006)
Television broadcast stations NA 5 (2006)
Terrain mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south
Total fertility rate 4.4 children born/woman (2005 est.) 3.52 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 27.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.) 9.4% (2006)
Waterways - 825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2007)
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