Compare West Bank (2005) - Congo, Republic of the (2006)

Compare West Bank (2005) z Congo, Republic of the (2006)

	West Bank (2005)	Congo, Republic of the (2006)

Administrative divisions	-	10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune; Bouenza, Brazzaville, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha
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: 46.4% (male 864,407/female 853,728) 15-64 years: 50.7% (male 930,390/female 945,545) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 44,430/female 63,814) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products	cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products
Airports	3 (2004 est.)	32 (2006)
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 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 11 (2006)
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: 342,000 sq km land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Delaware	slightly smaller than Montana
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.	Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government took office in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, and ushered in a period of ethnic and political unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo was once one of Africa's largest petroleum producers, but with declining production it will need to hope for new offshore oil finds to sustain its oil earnings over the long term.
Birth rate	32.37 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	42.57 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $676.6 million expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA; note - these budget data include Gaza Strip (2003)	revenues: $1.328 billion expenditures: $1.065 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	-	name: Brazzaville geographic coordinates: 4 16 S, 15 17 E time difference: UTC+1 (six hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters	tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); persistent high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	169 km
Constitution	-	approved by referendum 20 January 2002
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: West Bank	conventional long form: Republic of the Congo conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo
Death rate	3.99 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	12.93 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.)	$5 billion (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	-	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mark BIEDLINGMAIER embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa)
Diplomatic representation in the US	-	chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860
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	about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area
Economic aid - recipient	$2 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.)	$159.1 million (1995)
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.	The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. The Republic of Congo may be eligible for an IMF-World Bank heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative in early 2006, provided it meets the strict fiscal and monetary targets set out for it under a new three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) with the IMF.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	619 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	NA kWh	300 million kWh (2003)
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	343 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m
Environment - current issues	adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment	air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%	Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3%
Exchange rates	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)
Executive branch	-	chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7%
Exports	$205 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip (2002)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone	petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds
Exports - partners	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000)	China 38.9%, US 29%, Taiwan 11.8%, South Korea 7.2% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year (since 1 January 1992)	calendar year
Flag description	-	divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 9% industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (2002 est.)	agriculture: 6.2% industry: 57% services: 36.9% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	6% (2003 est.)	8.2% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	32 00 N, 35 15 E	1 00 S, 15 00 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.)	about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them
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%
Imports	$1.5 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip (2002)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	food, consumer goods, construction materials	capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000)	France 25.6%, China 11.3%, US 8.1%, India 8%, Italy 7.5%, Belgium 5.1%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005)
Independence	-	15 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	0% (2002 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	petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes
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: 85.29 deaths/1,000 live births male: 91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.)	2.2% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	-	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA sq km	20 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Labor force	364,000 (2004)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2004 est.)	-
Land boundaries	total: 404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km	total: 5,504 km border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km
Land use	arable land: 16.9% permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001)	arable land: 1.45% permanent crops: 0.15% other: 98.4% (2005)
Languages	Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)	French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)
Legal system	-	based on French civil law system and customary law
Legislative branch	-	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 73.08 years male: 71.33 years female: 74.95 years (2005 est.)	total population: 52.8 years male: 51.65 years female: 53.98 years (2006 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: 83.8% male: 89.6% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle East, west of Jordan	Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon
Map references	Middle East	Africa
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	registered in other countries: 1 (Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1) (2006)
Military branches	-	Congolese Armed Forces (FAC): Army, Congolese Air Force (Armee de l'Air Congolaise), Navy, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	$85.22 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	1.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday	-	Independence Day, 15 August (1960)
Nationality	noun: NA adjective: NA	noun: Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo
Natural hazards	droughts	seasonal flooding
Natural resources	arable land	petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower
Net migration rate	2.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	-3.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	-	gas 89 km; liquid petroleum gas 4 km; oil 744 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	-	the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president] (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal); Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC
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.)	3,702,314 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 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	59% (2004 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	3.13% (2005 est.)	2.6% (2006 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 5, shortwave 3 (2001)
Railways	-	total: 894 km narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2005)
Religions	Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8%	Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2%
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: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 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: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	301,600 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2002)	13,800 (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular	480,000 (cellular subscribers in both West Bank and Gaza Strip) (2003)	490,000 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	NA	1 (2002)
Terrain	mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east	coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin
Total fertility rate	4.4 children born/woman (2005 est.)	6.07 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	27.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2004 est.)	NA%
Waterways	-	4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2005)

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.