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Belize National Flag |
Belize Coat Of Arms |
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- FORM OF GOVERNMENT:
- Democratic- Bicameral Legislature based on Westminister System.
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- CLIMATE:
- Belize has a subtropical climate that is uniformly hot and humid, although it is tempered by the trade winds. The dry season is from February to March with another brief spell during August, while the hurricane season which often causes severe damage is from July to October. Average annual precipitation varies from 1,270 mm (50 inches) in the north to more than 3,810 mm (100 inches) in the south. Average temperature ranges in Belize City are from 19 to 27 degrees Celsius (66 to 81 degrees Fahrenheit) in January to 24 to 31 degrees Celsius (75 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit) in August.
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- LOCATION and GEOGRAPHY:
- Belize is located on the eastern coast of Central America. It is bound by the Caribbean Sea to the east, Mexico to the north and northwest and Guatemala to the west and southwest. The coastline is fringed by cays as well as the world's second longest barrier reef while the coastal plain is flat and swampy, although the inland terrain rises gradually below the peaks of the Maya Mountains. The country is more fertile inland and also has Savannah, pine and tropical forests. Belize is drained by seventeen rivers with the Belize River dissecting the country from west to east. Major Cities (pop. est); Belize City 48,000, Orange Walk 12,000, San Ignacio/Santa Elena 10,000, Corozal 8,000, Belmopan 4,000 (1993). Land Use; forested 92%, pastures 2%, agricultural-cultivated 3%, other 3% (1993).
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- LAND AREA:
- 8,867 Square Miles or 22,923 sq.km.
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- CAPITAL AND MAJOR TOWNS:
- (Capital) Belmopan: (Other City) Belize City, (Towns) San Ignacio, Benque Viejo Del Carmen, Corozal, Orange Walk, Dangriga, Monkey River and Punta Gorda.
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- RAINFALL:
- Ranges from 60 inches in the North to 200 inches in the South annually.
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- POPULATION:
- Approximately 297,651 as of 2007 census. Roughly 48% urban and 52% rural. Belize is sparsely populated with 50% of the population living in six main urban areas while around 23% live in the former capital of Belize City. The population density is approximately 31 per square mile or 12 per square kilometer. The population is of mixed racial descent with Creoles predominantly Black Africans accounting for approximately 40% of the population while Mestizos who are of mixed European and AmerIndian descent account for 33%. Another 20% of the population are comprised from Arab, Mayan and other AmerIndian ethnic groups. The remainder includes Europeans, Spanish, East Indians, Lebanese and Chinese.
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DENSITY OF POPULATION and VITAL STATISTICS:
- Density; 8 persons per sq km (22 persons per sq mi) (1991). Urban-Rural; 51.6% urban, 48.4% rural (1990). Sex Distribution; 50.7% male, 49.3% female (1987). Life Expectancy at Birth; 67.0 years male, 72.0 years female (1989). Age Breakdown; 45% under 15, 28% 15 to 29, 12% 30 to 44, 8% 45 to 59, 5% 60 to 74, 2% 75 and over (1987). Birth Rate; 36.0 per 1,000 (1989). Death Rate; 6.0 per 1,000 (1989). Increase Rate; 30.0 per 1,000 (1989). Infant Mortality Rate; 36.0 per 1,000 live births (1989).
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- LABOR FORCE:
- 69,720 (1995)
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- LANGUAGES:
- Official language is English, however, Spanish is widely spoken, there are also a number of ethnic languages e.g. Creole, Garifuna, Maya and Ketchi.
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- RELIGIONS:
- Mostly Christians with around 60% of the population Roman Catholic while the remaining 40% are from the Anglican or other Protestant Churches. Mainly Christianity- both Roman Catholics and Protestants. Small groups practice Islam, Hinduism and Bahai.
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- CURRENCY:
- Belize dollar- . The official currency is the Dollar (BZD) divided into 100 Cents. $2.00 BZD = $1.00 USD pegged to the Us$ since 1976
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- EDUCATION:
- Aged 25 or over and having attained: no formal schooling 10.7%, primary 75.3%, secondary 11.7%, higher 2.3% (1980). Literacy; literate population aged 15 or over 99,000 or 93.0% (1991).
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- EXCHANGE RATE:
- US$1.00= BZ$2.00
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- GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT:
- (BZ$m) 986.0 Million (1995) Current Market Prices. Gross National Product; USD $499,000,000 (1993). Public Debt; USD $180,300,000 (1994). Imports; BZD $561,600,000 (1993). Exports; BZD $263,100,000 (1993). Tourism Receipts; USD $73,000,000 (1993). Balance of Trade; BZD -$170,600,000 (1994). Economically Active Population; 66,060 or 33.1% of total population (1993). Unemployed; 30.8% (1994)
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- PER CAPITA GDP:
- (BZ$) 4,718 (1995) Current Prices.
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- CHIEF INDUSTRIES:
- Agriculture, Brewing, Clothing, Fishing, Footwear, Forestry, Soft Drink Bottling, Sugar Refining, Textiles.
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- CHIEF EXPORTS:
- Bananas, Citrus Fruits, Clothing, Fish Products, Molasses, Sugar, Timber..
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- CHIEF PRODUCTS:
- Bananas, Citrus Fruits, Coconuts, Corn, Fish, Maize, Rice, Sugar Cane, Timber. Shrimp.
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- TELECOMMUNICATIONS:
- Belize area code is 501, and the country code is 011 . From north america dial 011 501 (number).
- All automatic systems: Direct dialing with major countries in the world, telexes and faxes are also readily available. U.S. Telexes and Faxes readily available. Daily Newspapers; nil, Weekly Newspapers; 4 (1994). Radio; receivers 106,000 (1994). Television; receivers 27,048 (1994). Telephones; units 28,600 (1993).
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- BUSINESS HOURS:
- Government Working Hours: (Monday to Friday) 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- Banking Hours: (Monday-Thursday) 8:00a.m. - 1:00p.m.
- (Friday) 8:00 a.m.- 12:00 noon and 2:00p.m. to 4:30p.m
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- ENTRY AND VISA REQUIREMENT:
- Visitors are permitted to stay up to one (1) month provided they have a valid passport. Nationals of a few countries require vsa for entry into Belize.
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- MILITARY
- 950 (1994) total active duty personnel with 94.7% army, 3.7% navy and 1.6% air force while military expenditure accounts for 2.6% (1990) of the Gross National Product (GNP). .
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