Tonga (2001) | Jamaica (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
40.93% (male 21,739; female 20,916) 15-64 years: 54.99% (male 28,231; female 29,082) 65 years and over: 4.08% (male 1,912; female 2,347) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.5% (male 385,099/female 367,398)
15-64 years: 65.6% (male 897,953/female 893,509) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 83,632/female 104,241) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, vegetables, poultry, goats, milk, crustaceans, and mollusks |
Airports | 6 (2000 est.) | 35 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
748 sq km land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | The archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. It became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its independence in 1970 and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a drop off in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 23.59 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.56 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$49 million expenditures: $120 million, including capital expenditures of $75 million (FY96/97 est.) |
revenues: $2.793 billion
expenditures: $3.157 billion, including capital expenditures of $236 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | Nuku'alofa | Kingston |
Climate | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 419 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967 | 6 August 1962 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Tonga conventional short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
Currency | pa'anga (TOP) | - |
Death rate | 5.74 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.37 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $62 million (1998) | $5.964 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga | chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 935-6001 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tonga does not have an embassy in the US; Ambassador Fetu'utolo TUPOU, resides in London; address: Embassy of the Kingdom of Tonga, c/o Tonga High Commission, 36 Molyneux Street, London W1H 6AB, telephone [44] (171) 724-5828, FAX [44] (171) 723-9074
consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $38.8 million (1995) | $16 million (2003) |
Economy - overview | Tonga has a small, open economy with a narrow export base in agricultural goods, which contributes 30% to GDP. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The industrial sector accounts for only 10% of GDP. Tourism is the primary source of hard currency earnings. The country remains dependent on sizable external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonable basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. | The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. The global economic slowdown, particularly after the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001, stunted economic growth; the economy rebounded moderately in 2003-04, with brisk tourist seasons. But the economy faces serious long-term problems: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a sizable merchandise trade deficit; large-scale unemployment; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy. The ratio of debt to GDP is close to 150%. Inflation, previously a bright spot, is expected to remain in the double digits. Uncertain economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. In 2004, the government faced the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem which is hampering economic growth. Attempts at deficit control were derailed by Hurricane Ivan in September 2004, which required substantial government spending to repair the damage. Despite the hurricane, tourism looks set to enjoy solid growth for the foreseeable future. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.6 million kWh (1999) | 5.849 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 35 million kWh (1999) | 6.289 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian, Europeans about 300 | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | pa'anga per US dollar - 1.9885 (January 2001), 1.7585 (2000), 1.5991 (1999), 1.4920 (1998), 1.2635 (1997), 1.2323 (1996) | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003), 48.416 (2002), 45.996 (2001), 42.986 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
King Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965) head of government: Prime Minister Prince Lavaka ata ULUKALALA (since NA February 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister Tevita TOPOU (since NA January 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch and the Cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed for life by the monarch |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | $8 million (f.o.b., 1998) | NA |
Exports - commodities | squash, fish, vanilla beans | alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels |
Exports - partners | Japan 53%, US 18%, NZ 6%, Australia 6% (1997 est.) | US 17.4%, Canada 14.8%, France 13%, China 10.5%, UK 8.7%, Netherlands 7.5%, Norway 6%, Germany 5.9% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $225 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
30% industry: 10% services: 60% (1997) |
agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 32.7% services: 61.3% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,100 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 1.9% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 175 00 W | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | archipelago of 170 islands (36 inhabited) | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Highways | total:
680 km paved: 184 km unpaved: 496 km (1996) |
total: 18,700 km
paved: 13,109 km unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 30.3% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | - | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | $69 million (f.o.b., 1998) | NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals | food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials |
Imports - partners | NZ 30%, Australia 19%, US 11%, UK 11%, Japan 3% (1997 est.) | US 38.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.2%, France 5.6%, Japan 4.7% (2004) |
Independence | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.6% (FY98/99) | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, fishing | tourism, bauxite/alumina, textiles, agro processing, wearing apparel, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications |
Infant mortality rate | 14.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 12.36 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (2000 est.) | 12.4% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 250 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (consists of the Privy Council with the addition of the chief justice of the Supreme Court) | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 34,000 (FY96/97) | 1.14 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 65% (1997 est.) | agriculture 20.1%, industry 16.6%, services 63.4% (2003) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
24% permanent crops: 43% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 11% other: 16% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 10.16% other: 73.77% (2001) |
Languages | Tongan, English | English, patois English |
Legal system | based on English law | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats - 12 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held NA March 1999 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote - pro-democratic 40%; seats - pro-democratic 5, traditionalist 4 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held in October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
68.25 years male: 65.83 years female: 70.78 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.33 years
male: 71.63 years female: 75.12 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
can read and write Tongan and/or English total population: 98.5% male: 98.4% female: 98.7% (1996 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 20,626 GRT/29,468 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 2, liquefied gas 3, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 74,881 GRT/100,682 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 5, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 8 (Germany 2, Greece 5, UAE 1) (2005) |
Military branches | Tonga Defense Services (includes Royal Tongan Marines, Tongan Royal Guards, Maritime Force, Police); note - a new Air Wing which will be subordinate to the Defense Ministry is being developed | Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $31.2 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.4% (2003) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 June (1970) | Independence Day, 6 August (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Tongan(s) adjective: Tongan |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | fish, fertile soil | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -4.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Human Rights and Democracy Movement [Huliki WATAB, chairman, Viliami FUKOFUKA, president, 'Akilisi POHIVA, vice president] | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Hyacinth BENNETT]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Pro-Democracy and Human Rights Movement [leader NA] | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 104,227 (July 2001 est.) | 2,731,832 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 19.7% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.79% (2001 est.) | 0.71% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Neiafu, Nuku'alofa, Pangai | Kingston, Port Esquivel, Port Kaiser, Port Rhoades, Rocky Point |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 61,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge note: 207 of these km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation had been in common carrier service until 1992 but are no longer operational; 57 km of the remaining track is privately owned and used by ALCAN to transport bauxite (2003) |
Religions | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-876; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 8,000 (1996) | 444,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 302 (1996) | 1.4 million (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 3 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.95 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 13.3% (FY96/97) | 15% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |