Compare West Bank (2008) - Bahamas, The (2005)

Compare West Bank (2008) z Bahamas, The (2005)

	West Bank (2008)	Bahamas, The (2005)

Administrative divisions	-	21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.4% (male 551,243/female 524,800) 15-64 years: 54.2% (male 704,209/female 670,382) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 36,175/female 49,118) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 27.9% (male 42,142/female 42,096) 15-64 years: 65.9% (male 97,865/female 101,047) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 7,616/female 11,024) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products	citrus, vegetables; poultry
Airports	3 (2007)	63 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 29 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 34 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)
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: 13,940 sq km land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Delaware	slightly smaller than Connecticut
Background	The September 1993 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements provided for a transitional period of Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under a series of agreements signed between May 1994 and September 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and Gaza. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza stalled following the outbreak of an intifada in September 2000, as Israeli forces reoccupied most Palestinian-controlled areas. In April 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004, Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005. A month later, Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments in an effort to move the peace process forward. In September 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and withdrew settlers and redeployed soldiers from four small northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. A November 2005 PA-Israeli agreement authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control. In January 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won control of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). The international community refused to accept the HAMAS-led government because it did not recognize Israel, would not renounce violence, and refused to honor previous peace agreements between Israel and the PA. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, but President ABBAS had little success negotiating with HAMAS to present a political platform acceptable to the international community so as to lift economic sanctions on Palestinians. The PLC was unable to convene throughout most of 2006 as a result of Israel's detention of many HAMAS PLC members and Israeli-imposed travel restrictions on other PLC members. Violent clashes took place between Fatah and HAMAS supporters in the Gaza Strip in 2006 and early 2007, resulting in numerous Palestinian deaths and injuries. ABBAS and HAMAS Political Bureau Chief MISHAL in February 2007 signed the Mecca Agreement in Saudi Arabia that resulted in the formation of a Palestinian National Unity Government (NUG) headed by HAMAS member Ismail HANIYA. However, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, and in June, HAMAS militants succeeded in a violent takeover of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip. ABBAS dismissed the NUG and through a series of presidential decrees formed a PA government in the West Bank led by independent Salam FAYYAD. HAMAS rejected the NUG's dismissal and has called for resuming talks with Fatah, but ABBAS has ruled out negotiations until HAMAS agrees to a return of PA control over the Gaza Strip and recognizes the FAYYAD-led government. FAYYAD and his PA government initiated a series of security and economic reforms to improve conditions in the West Bank. ABBAS participated in talks with Israel's Prime Minister OLMERT and secured the release of some Palestinian prisoners and previously withheld customs revenue. During a November 2007 international meeting in Annapolis Maryland, ABBAS and OLMERT agreed to resume peace negotiations with the goal of reaching a final peace settlement by the end of 2008.	Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US.
Birth rate	30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	17.87 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.149 billion expenditures: $2.31 billion note: includes Gaza Strip (2006)	revenues: $1 billion expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of $106.7 million (FY03/04)
Capital	-	Nassau
Climate	temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters	tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	3,542 km
Constitution	-	10 July 1973
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: West Bank	conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas conventional short form: The Bahamas
Death rate	3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$NA	$308.5 million (2002)
Diplomatic representation from the US	-	chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ROOD embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222
Diplomatic representation in the US	-	chief of mission: Ambassador Joshua SEARS chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York
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 withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 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	have not been able to agree on the alignment of a maritime boundary with the US; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability
Economic aid - recipient	$1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)	$9.8 million (1995)
Economy - overview	The West Bank - the larger of the two areas comprising the Palestinian Authority (PA) - has experienced a general decline in economic conditions since the second intifada began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely a result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of closures and access restrictions in response to security concerns in Israel - which disrupted labor and trading relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of capital, the disruption of administrative structures, and widespread business closures. International aid of at least $1.14 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. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities - due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally - stymied growth. Israel's and the international community's financial embargo of the PA when HAMAS ran the PA during March 2006 - June 2007 has interrupted the provision of PA social services and the payment of PA salaries. Since June the Fayyad government in the West Bank has restarted salary payments and the provision of services but would be unable to operate absent high levels of international assistance.	The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism alone accounts for more than 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in 2001-03. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector, which depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. In addition to tourism and banking, the government supports the development of a "third pillar," e-commerce.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	1.596 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	NA kWh	0 kWh (2002)
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	1.716 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m
Environment - current issues	adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment	coral reef decay; solid 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 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%	black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
Exchange rates	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003)	Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000)
Executive branch	-	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Ivy DUMONT (since NA May 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Perry CHRISTIE (since 3 May 2002) and Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia PRATT (since 7 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation 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; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports	$301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)	transhipments of 29,000 bbl/day (2003)
Exports - commodities	olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone	mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals; fruit and vegetables
Exports - partners	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)	US 40.2%, Poland 13.3%, Spain 11.6%, Germany 5.9%, France 4.3% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	-	three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 8% industry: 13% services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)	agriculture: 3% industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)	3% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	32 00 N, 35 15 E	24 15 N, 76 00 W
Geography - note	landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.)	strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited
Heliports	-	1 (2004 est.)
Highways	-	total: 2,693 km paved: 1,546 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: 27% (2000)
Illicit drugs	-	transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center
Imports	$2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)	NA
Imports - commodities	food, consumer goods, construction materials	machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals
Imports - partners	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)	US 22.4%, South Korea 18.9%, Brazil 9.2%, Japan 7.9%, Italy 7.8%, Venezuela 6.6% (2004)
Independence	-	10 July 1973 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)	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	tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe
Infant mortality rate	total: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births male: 20.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 25.21 deaths/1,000 live births male: 31.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006)	1.2% (year ending September 2004)
International organization participation	-	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOM, IOC, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003)	NA
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; magistrates courts
Labor force	605,000 (2006)	156,000 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 18% industry: 15% services: 67% (2006)	agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (1999 est.)
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: 0.8% permanent crops: 0.4% other: 98.8% (2001)
Languages	Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)	English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
Legal system	-	based on English common law
Legislative branch	-	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16-member body appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader for five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (40 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time elections: last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 50.8%, FNM 41.1%, independents 5.2%; seats by party - PLP 29, FNM 7, independents 4
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 73.46 years male: 71.68 years female: 75.35 years (2007 est.)	total population: 65.54 years male: 62.11 years female: 69.04 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.4% male: 96.7% female: 88% (2004 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle East, west of Jordan	Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba
Map references	Middle East	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	total: 1,119 by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 183, cargo 259, chemical tanker 54, combination ore/oil 17, container 74, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, passenger 116, passenger/cargo 40, petroleum tanker 168, refrigerated cargo 130, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 24 foreign-owned: 968 (Angola 4, Australia 4, Belgium 17, Canada 9, China 3, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 13, Denmark 18, Estonia 1, Finland 7, France 28, Germany 15, Greece 194, Hong Kong 11, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Israel 1, Italy 7, Japan 49, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Latvia 1, Malaysia 12, Monaco 15, Netherlands 24, New Zealand 1, Nigeria 2, Norway 229, Poland 13, Reunion 1, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 12, Serbia & Montenegro 2, Singapore 11, Slovenia 1, South Korea 1, Spain 6, Sweden 9, Switzerland 4, Thailand 1, Trinidad & Tobago 2, Turkey 7, UAE 12, United Kingdom 55, United States 154, Uruguay 2) registered in other countries: 35 (2005)
Military branches	-	Royal Bahamaian Defense Force (naval forces) (2004)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	NA
National holiday	-	Independence Day, 10 July (1973)
Nationality	noun: NA adjective: NA	noun: Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian
Natural hazards	droughts	hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage
Natural resources	arable land	salt, aragonite, timber, arable land
Net migration rate	2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	Free National Movement or FNM [Tommy TURNQUEST]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE]
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	NA
Population	2,535,927 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.)	301,790 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 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	46% (2007 est.)	NA
Population growth rate	2.985% (2007 est.)	0.67% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point
Radio broadcast stations	AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008)	AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8%	Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census)
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: 0.736 male(s)/female total population: 1.038 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 (2004)	general assessment: modern facilities domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: country code - 1-242; tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (1997)
Telephones - main lines in use	349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)	131,700 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)	121,800 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	30 (2008)	2 (2004)
Terrain	mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east	long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills
Total fertility rate	4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.2 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	18.6% (2006)	10.2% (2004 est.)

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