Compare Lithuania (2005) - Benin (2006)

Compare Lithuania (2005) z Benin (2006)

	Lithuania (2005)	Benin (2006)

Administrative divisions	10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus	12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou
Age structure	0-14 years: 16.1% (male 297,271/female 282,269) 15-64 years: 68.7% (male 1,206,731/female 1,264,359) 65 years and over: 15.2% (male 186,979/female 359,008) (2005 est.)	0-14 years: 44.1% (male 1,751,709/female 1,719,138) 15-64 years: 53.5% (male 2,067,248/female 2,138,957) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 75,694/female 110,198) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish	cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock
Airports	102 (2004 est.)	5 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 28 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 14 (2004 est.)	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 74 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 68 (2004 est.)	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006)
Area	total: 65,200 sq km land: NA sq km water: NA sq km	total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia	slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Background	Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.	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.
Birth rate	8.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	38.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.542 billion expenditures: $7.121 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $766.8 million expenditures: $1.017 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	Vilnius	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	transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers	tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline	99 km	121 km
Constitution	adopted 25 October 1992	December 1990
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Lithuania conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic	conventional long form: Republic of Benin conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey
Death rate	10.92 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	12.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$10.01 billion (2004 est.)	$1.6 billion (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen D. MULL embassy: 2600 Akmenu 6, Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510	chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Vygaudas USACKAS chancery: 2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York	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	in 2003, the Lithuania-Russia land and maritime boundary treaty was ratified and a transit regime established through Lithuania linking Russia and its Kaliningrad coastal exclave, leaving only improvements to the border demarcation in 2005; by 2004, a third of the Belarus-Lithuania boundary had been demarcated; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Lithuania must implement the strict Schengen border rules	Benin and Burkina Faso military clash in 2006 over sections of riverine boundary involving disputed villages and squatters; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin as a consequence of a 2004 joint task force to resolve maritime and land boundary disputes, but clashes among rival gangs along the border persist; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones
Economic aid - recipient	$228.5 million (1995)	$342.6 million (2000)
Economy - overview	Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment dropped from 11% in 2003 to 8% in 2004. Growing domestic consumption and increased investment have furthered recovery. Trade has been increasingly oriented toward the West. Lithuania has gained membership in the World Trade Organization and joined the EU in May 2004. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, is nearing completion. Overall, more than 80% of enterprises have been privatized. Foreign government and business support have helped in the transition from the old command economy to a market economy.	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. Many of these proposals are included in Benin's application to receive Millennium Challenge Account funding - for which it was a finalist in 2004-05. 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	10.17 billion kWh (2002)	538.2 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	6.8 billion kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	300 million kWh (2002)	474 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	17.93 billion kWh (2002)	69 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m
Environment - current issues	contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases	inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants	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 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Lithuanian 83.4%, Polish 6.7%, Russian 6.3%, other or unspecified 3.6% (2001 census)	African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500
Exchange rates	litai per US dollar - 2.7806 (2004), 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004) head of government: Premier Algirdas Mykolas BRAZAUSKAS (since 3 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the premier elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 13 June 2004 and 27 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009); premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 52.2%, Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE 47.8%	chief of state: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held March 2011) election results: YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%
Exports	NA	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001)	cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa
Exports - partners	Germany 10.2%, Latvia 10.2%, Russia 9.3%, France 6.3%, UK 5.3%, Sweden 5.1%, Estonia 5%, Poland 4.8%, Netherlands 4.8%, Denmark 4.8%, US 4.7%, Switzerland 4.6% (2004)	China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red	two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 6.1% industry: 33.4% services: 60.5% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 31.6% industry: 13.8% services: 54.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $12,500 (2004 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	6.6% (2004 est.)	3.5% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	56 00 N, 24 00 E	9 30 N, 2 15 E
Geography - note	fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits	sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands
Highways	total: 77,148 km paved: 69,202 km (including 417 km of expressways) unpaved: 7,946 km (2002)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 25.6% (1996)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia; limited production of methamphetamine and ecstasy; susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation	transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure
Imports	NA	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001)	foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners	Russia 23.1%, Germany 16.7%, Poland 7.7%, Netherlands 4% (2004)	France 21.8%, Ghana 7.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 7%, China 6.7%, UK 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Togo 4.5%, Thailand 4.2%, Nigeria 4% (2005)
Independence	11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence)	1 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	12% (2004 est.)	8.3% (2001 est.)
Industries	metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber	textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement
Infant mortality rate	total: 6.89 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 79.56 deaths/1,000 live births male: 84.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 74.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.1% (2004 est.)	3.5% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	90 sq km (1998 est.)	120 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President	Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
Labor force	1.63 million (2004 est.)	3.211 million
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 20%, industry 30%, services 50% (1997 est.)	-
Land boundaries	total: 1,273 km border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km	total: 1,989 km border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km
Land use	arable land: 45.22% permanent crops: 0.91% other: 53.87% (2001)	arable land: 23.53% permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005)
Languages	Lithuanian (official) 82%, Russian 8%, Polish 5.6%, other and unspecified 4.4% (2001 census)	French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)
Legal system	based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court	based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats, 71 members are directly elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional representation; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 10 and 24 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor 28.6%, Working for Lithuania (Social Democrats and Social Liberals) 20.7%, Homeland Union (Conservatives) 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Union of Farmers and New Democracy 6.6%; seats by faction - Labor 39, Homeland Union 25, Social Democrats 20, Liberal and Center Union 18, Social Liberals 11, Union of Farmers and New Democracy Parties 10, Liberal Democrats 10, Electoral Action 2, independents 6	unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 30 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, Alliance MDC-PC-CPP, IPD, AFP, MDS, RDP) 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 73.97 years male: 68.94 years female: 79.28 years (2005 est.)	total population: 53.04 years male: 51.9 years female: 54.22 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 33.6% male: 46.4% female: 22.6% (2002 est.)
Location	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo
Map references	Europe	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm	territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 54 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 296,856 GRT/317,731 DWT by type: bulk carrier 8, cargo 24, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 13, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 12) registered in other countries: 16 (2005)	-
Military branches	Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, National Defense Volunteer Forces (SKAT)	Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$230.8 million (FY01)	$100.9 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.9% (FY01)	2.3% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood; 11 March 1990 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union	National Day, 1 August (1960)
Nationality	noun: Lithuanian(s) adjective: Lithuanian	noun: Beninese (singular and plural) adjective: Beninese
Natural hazards	NA	hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March
Natural resources	peat, arable land	small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber
Net migration rate	-0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	gas 1,696 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party [Viktor USPASKICH, chairman]; Liberal and Center Union [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Valentinas STUNDYS, chairman]; Lithuanian People's Union for a Fair Lithuania; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP and the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP; New Democracy and Farmer's Union or VNDPS [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Social Liberals (New Union) [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists	Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; 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; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [Nicephore SOGLO]; 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	3,596,617 (July 2005 est.)	7,862,944 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	NA	33% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.3% (2005 est.)	2.73% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors	Klaipeda	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001)	AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)
Railways	total: 1,998 km broad gauge: 1,807 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 169 km 0.750-m gauge (2004)	total: 578 km narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)
Religions	Roman Catholic 79%, Russian Orthodox 4.1%, Protestant (including Lutheran and Evangelical Christian Baptist) 1.9%, other or unspecified 5.5%, none 9.5% (2001 census)	indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access domestic: a national, fiber-optic cable, interurban, trunk system is nearing completion; rural exchanges are being improved and expanded; mobile cellular systems are being installed; access to the Internet is available; still many unsatisfied telephone subscriber applications international: country code - 370; landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite	general assessment: NA domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use	824,200 (2003)	76,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	2,169,900 (2003)	386,700 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	27 note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001)	1 (2001)
Terrain	lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil	mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains
Total fertility rate	1.19 children born/woman (2005 est.)	5.2 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	8% (2004 est.)	NA%
Waterways	600 km (2004)	150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (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.