Belize

Belize Background

Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize (formerly British Honduras) until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. The country remains plagued by high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, and increased urban crime.

Belize Information

• Population: 272,945 (July 2004 est.)
• Nationality: noun: Belizean(s) adjective: Belizean
• Location:: Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico
• Religions:: Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Anglican 5.3%, Methodist 3.5%, Mennonite 4.1%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Pentecostal 7.4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), none 9.4%, other 14% (2000)
• Ethnic Groups:: mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%
• Land Boundaries:: total: 516 km border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km
• Area: total: 22,966 sq km water: 160 sq km land: 22,806 sq km
• Coast Line: 386 km
• Climate: tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)
• Terrain: flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south
• Maritime Claims: territorial sea: 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework
• Land Use: arable land: 2.85% permanent crops: 1.71% other: 95.44% (2001)
• Environmental Issues: deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal
• Natural Resources: arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower
• Highways: total: 2,872 km paved: 488 km unpaved: 2,384 km (1999 est.)
• Railways:
• Ports & Harbours: Belize City, Big Creek, Corozol, Punta Gorda
• Airports: 43 (2003 est.)