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Belize Country Profile

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Belize Country Profile Country Profile – Belize 2011 Table of Contents Table of Contents 1. GENERAL INFORMATION 2. SOCIAL INDICATORS 3. REACHING CONSUMERS 4. ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 5. TRADE OVERVIEW 6. MARKET ACCESS 7. BILATERAL RELATIONSHIP 8. BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT 9. USEFUL CONTACTS 2 This profile contains the following information: General Information as it pertains to the: geography, climate, national and environmental hazards, natural resources, language, population, currency and government and politics of Dominican Republic; Social Indicators of the level of human development including statistics on health, education, inequality, gender inequality, environmental sustainability and overall human development ranking; An Economic Outlook which comprises an economic overview of the economy and lists a number of economic indicators such as statistics on: the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the labour force, unemployment, poverty and inflation rates; Trade Overview provides a visual display of the major imports/ exports and provides the Dominican Republic’s trade balance with Barbados and with CARICOM; Market Access includes an overview of: Infrastructure for Trade Facilitation which contains information on ports and terminals, airports, telecommunications, media and roads; -Trade Agreements Entered into Force - this category lists multilateral agreements, customs unions, free trade agreements and partial preferential agreements of which the Dominican Republic is a party; -Bilateral Investment Treaties - includes partners, date of signature and date of entry into force if applicable; Trade Policy and Measure Affecting Trade - consists of measures which have negative or positive impacts on exports and imports; Bilateral Relations- shows data on trade flows between Barbados and St. Lucia and provides a brief synopsis on tourism. 3 Business Environment- information on the steps to starting a business, the grant of construction permits, applicable taxes, procedures and documentation needed to facilitate trade across borders; Distribution Channels; and Useful contacts. 4 1. GENERAL INFORMATION Geography Belize is found in Central America. It is situated between Mexico and Guatemala, and borders the Caribbean Sea. Belize encompasses 22,966 sq. km. (8,867 sq. miles)1. The size of Belize is 23,000 sq km. The northern half of the mainland of Belize is a plain with thin soil that supports scrub vegetation and dense hardwood tropical forest. The coastal area is neither land nor sea, but a sodden, swampy transition between the two. The central part of the country consists of sandy soil that supports large savannas, with a mountainous region southwest of Belize City. The southern part of Belize, with an annual rainfall of some 170 inches, has a true tropical rain forest that is rich with ferns, palms, lianas, and tropical hardwoods. 2 Belize is rectangular in shape and extends about 280 kilometers north-south and about 100 kilometers east-west, with a total land boundary length of 516 kilometers. The undulating courses of two rivers, the Hondo and the Sarstoon, define much of the course of the country's northern and southern boundaries. The western border follows no natural features and runs north- south through lowland forest and highland plateau. The Belizean coast line is flat and swampy with low mountains situated on the interior. 3 Main Cities Belize City, San Ignacio, Orange Walk, Belmopan, Dangriga, Corozal, San Pedro, Benque Viejo del Carmen, Punta Gorda, Valley of Peace 1 Information received from CIA world fact book: http://www. state. gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1955. htm 2 http://www.lowtax.net/lowtax/html/jbzcfir.html 3 http://countrystudies.us/belize/16.htm 5 Climate Belize has a tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons, although there are significant variations in weather patterns by region. Temperatures vary according to elevation, proximity to the coast, and the moderating effects of the northeast trade winds off the Caribbean. 4 Natural and Environmental Hazards Belize is prone to frequent, devastating hurricanes during the months June to November) and coastal flooding which occurs mainly in the south of the country. Natural Resources Arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower 5. Population The population was estimated at 321,115 in July 2011, with a growth rate of 2.056% annually. Most Belizeans are of multiracial descent. The ethnic make-up is: mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%. Due to racial harmony and religious tolerance, the many different racial elements in Belize have mixed and blended successfully, and Belize has gained a widespread reputation for its friendly people. Age Group Group’s % of Male Female Population 0-14 36.8 60,327 57,933 15-64 59.6 96,886 94,605 65 years and over 3.5 5,404 5,960 Source: www.mundi.com (2011 est) 4 http://countrystudies.us/belize/16.htm ;5 CIA Factbook, https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bh.html 6 Religion About 50% of the population is Roman Catholic; the Anglican Church and other Protestant Christian groups account for most of the remaining 50%. Mennonite settlers number about 8,500.6 Language English (official), Creole, Spanish, Garifuna, Mayan. 7 English, the official language, is spoken by virtually all except the refugees who arrived during the past decades. Spanish is the native tongue of about 50% of the people and is spoken as a second language by another 20%. The various Mayan groups still speak their indigenous languages, and an English-Creole dialect similar to the Creole dialects of the English-speaking Caribbean Islands is spoken by most. The rate of functional literacy is 76%. Time 6 hrs behind GMT (GMT-6) Government & Politics Type : Parliamentary democracy. Independence : September 21, 1981. Constitution : September 21, 1981. Political parties : United Democratic Party (UDP), People's United Party (PUP), National Alliance for Belizean Rights (NABR), National Reform Party (NRP), Vision Inspired By the 6 http://www. state. gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1955. htm 7 http://www. state. gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1955. htm 7 People (VIP), People's National Party (PNP), We the People Reform Movement (WTP). Suffrage : Universal adult. Belize has a democratic, bi-cameral legislature based on the Westminster system. Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain is the titular Head of State, represented by Governor General Sir Colville Young since 1993. The 29-member House of Representatives is elected by direct popular vote to serve a 5-year term. The Governor-General appoints the member of the House of Representatives who is leader of the majority party to be prime minister. The Governor-General appoints the 12-member Senate from six members on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and one each on the advice of the Belize Council of Churches and Evangelical Association of Churches, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Belize Better Business Bureau, and the National Trade Union Congress and the Civil Society Steering Committee. The two main political parties are the People's United Party or PUP and the United Democratic Party or UDP (leader Dean Barrow). Elections were last held on 6 February, 2008, and gave 21 seats to UDP with 6 seats to PUP. Dean Barrow is Prime Minister. Belize has a legal system based on common law. There is a Supreme Court, and the chief justice is appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the prime minister. The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as the court of last instance for members of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and also serves as an appeal court in both civil and criminal cases from common law courts in these member states. 8 8 http://www.lowtax.net/lowtax/html/jbzcfir.html 8 Relations with neighbouring countries Belize traditionally maintains a deep interest in the environment and sustainable development. A longstanding territorial dispute with Guatemala continues, although cooperation between the two countries has increased in recent years across a wide spectrum of common interests, including trade and environment. Seeing itself as a bridge, Belize is actively involved with the Caribbean nations of CARICOM, works with its Central American neighbors as a member of SICA (Central American Integration System), and participates in the Organization of American States.9 9Information received from CIA factbook : http://www. state. gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1955. htm 9 2. SOCIAL INDICATORS Health Indicators Expenditure on health, public (% of GDP) 2.6 Under-five morality (per 1,000 live births) 18 Life expectancy at birth (years) 76.1 Education Indicators Public expenditure on education (% GDP) 5.7 Expected years of schooling (of children 12.4 under 7 years) Mean years of schooling (of adults over 8 years) Adult literacy rate, both sexes (% aged 15 n.a and above) Combined gross enrolment ratio in 75.1 education (both sexes) % education index (expected and mean years 0.663 of schooling) Inequality Indicators Inequality-adjusted education index n.a Inequality-adjusted income index n.a Gender inequality index value 10 Indicators Population with at least secondary 1.073 education, female/male ratio Adolescent fertility rate (women aged 15- 78.7 19 years) (births per 1,000 women aged 15- 19 years) Shares in parliament, female-male ratio 0.125 Labour force participation rate (ratio of 0.588 female to male shares) Sustainability Adjusted net savings Indicators Endangered species (% of all species) 6 Ecological footprint of consumption n.a (global hectares per capita) Greenhouse gases per capita n.a Natural resource depletion (% of GNI) Carbon dioxide per capita emissions 0.9 (growth 1970-2008) (%) Forest area (thousand ha) 1,412 Change in forest area (%) -11 Impact of natural disasters: number of 13 deaths (average per year per million) Impact of natural disasters: population 28,239 affected (average per year per million) Environmental Performance Index 69.9 Forest area (% of total land area) 61.9 11 Carbon Dioxide Emissions per capita 1.4 (tonnes) Human Development Index Rank 93 (High human development) 12 3.
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