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East of Guatemala and just south of Mexico.
Independence from Britain: 1981. Member of Commonwealth. Parliamentary Democracy. Chief of State: Queen Elizabeth II. Head of government (2005): Prime Minister Said Wilbert Musa. Bicameral legislature.
According to the CIA Factbook the country remains plagued by high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, and increasing urban crime.
Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.
Factbook: "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."
Estimated per capita GDP:
2008 $8,600 (ranks just above Thailand)
2007 $8,300
2006 $8,400
GDP annual growth rate
2008: 3.8%
2007: 1.6%
2006: 5.3%
unemployment rate for 2007: 8.5%.
2007: deaths 5.77 down from 6.04 in 2005; births 27.84, down from 29.34 in 2005
Estimated for July 2008: 301,270, up from 279,457 in 2005. Growth rate estimated for 2008: 2.207 percent per year. Density measured in 2005: 12.6 persons per square kilometer.
Infant mortality estimated for 2008: 23.65, down from 25.69 in 2005 (deaths before the age of one year, per 1,000 live births).
life expectancy at birth estimated for 2008: 68.19, up from 67.49 years in 2005.
Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 2.4percent (2003)
SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
Copyright © 2008 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.