| Area: total: 22,966 sq km land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km
Population: 294,385 (July 2007 est.)
Government: Parliamentary democracy Capital City: Belmopan People: mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%
Language(s): 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%
Religion(s): Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Pentecostal 7.4%, Anglican 5.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Mennonite 4.1%, Methodist 3.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), other 14%, none 9.4% (2000)
Currency: Belizean dollar pegged to the USD (BZD)
Belize is located in Central America. Encompassing a total area of 22,700 km 2, Belize is 274 km (170 miles) long and 109 km (68 miles) wide, with a population density of approximately 30.9 inhabitants per square mile in 2003. The capital is Belmopan City. Belize is the only English-speaking country in Central America. However, due to its location Spanish is widely spoken. The Prime Minister and the Cabinet constitute the executive branch of the government, while a 29-member elected House of Representatives and a 9-member appointed Senate form a bi-cameral legislature, the National Assembly.
Belize is a bit of the sideslip of Central America. It has more of the looks of the neighboring Caribbean Islands than the surrounding countries: the medium is English, most of the inhabitants are Creole and it has a "coup-free" history. And above all there is a very relaxing, laidback atmosphere.
Belize offers some of the most beautiful coral reefs in the Western Hemisphere, as well as more than 175 sandy caye islands. Various archeological sites, about 240 varieties of wild orchids, and about 500 species of birds adorn its extremely accessible rain forests and inland. |