mainland - Christian 30%, Muslim 35%, indigenous beliefs 35%; Zanzibar - more than 99% Muslim
Languages
Spanish 46%, Creole 32.9%, Mayan dialects 8.9%, English 3.9% (official), Garifuna 3.4% (Carib), German 3.3%, other 1.4%, unknown 0.2% (2000 census)
Kiswahili or Swahili (official), Kiunguja (name for Swahili in Zanzibar), English (official, primary language of commerce, administration, and higher education), Arabic (widely spoken in Zanzibar), many local languages note: Kiswahili (Swahili) is the mother tongue of the Bantu people living in Zanzibar and nearby coastal Tanzania; although Kiswahili is Bantu in structure and origin, its vocabulary draws on a variety of sources including Arabic and English; it has become the lingua franca of central and eastern Africa; the first language of most people is one of the local languages
Exports
sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood
External Debt
$1,457,000,000 $
Exchange Rate
Belizean dollars (BZD) per US dollar - 2 (2008 est.), 2 (2007), 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.200%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
Location
Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico
Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Kenya and Mozambique
Area
22,966 km sq
947,300 km sq
Coastline
386 km
1,424 km
Climate
tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)
varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands
