- consumption:5,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA
Oil - imports:
NA
Current account balance:
$-115 million (2004 est.)
Exports:
$401.4 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood
Exports - partners:
US 37.2%, UK 26.8%, Jamaica 4.6% (2004)
Imports:
$579.9 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels,
chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco
Imports - partners:
US 30.1%, Mexico 12%, Guatemala 7.4%, Cuba 7.2%, China 4.2%, Japan
4.1% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$111.1 million (2004 est.)
Debt - external:
$1.362 billion (June 2004 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
NA
Currency (code):
Belizean dollar (BZD)
Currency code:
BZD
Exchange rates:
Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2
(2001), 2 (2000)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Communications Belize
Telephones - main lines in use:
33,300 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
60,400 (2003)
Telephone system:
general assessment: above-average system
domestic: trunk network depends primarily on microwave radio relay
international: country code - 501; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios:
133,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
2 (1997)
Televisions:
41,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.bz
Internet hosts:
2,613 (2003)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
2 (2000)
Internet users:
30,000 (2002)
Transportation Belize
Highways: total: 2,872 km paved: 488 km unpaved: 2,384 km (1999 est.)
Waterways:
825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2004)
Ports and harbors:
Belize City
Merchant marine:
total: 295 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,015,270 GRT/1,336,890 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 25, cargo 207, chemical tanker 9, container 6,
passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 20, refrigerated cargo 17, roll
on/roll off 5
foreign-owned: 142 (Australia 2, Belgium 1, China 50, Cuba 1, Cyprus
1, Estonia 9, Germany 4, Hong Kong 6, Indonesia 3, Italy 2, Japan 5,
Latvia 4, Malaysia 1, Nigeria 1, Pakistan 1, Poland 2, Russia 23,
Singapore 5, South Korea 6, Spain 3, Switzerland 1, Turkey 2,
Ukraine 4, UAE 3, United States 2) (2005)
Airports:
43 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 38
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 11
under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.)
Military Belize
Military branches:
Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and
Volunteer Guard
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; laws allow for conscription only if volunteers are insufficient; conscription has never been implemented; volunteers typically outnumber available positions by 3:1 (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18–49: 60,750 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18–49: 41,368 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
