English (official), Spanish, Maya, Garifuna (Carib)

_#_Literacy: 91% (male 91%, female 91%) age 15 and over having ever
attended school (1970)

_#_Labor force: 51,500; agriculture 30.0%, services 16.0%, government
15.4%, commerce 11.2%, manufacturing 10.3%; shortage of skilled
labor and all types of technical personnel (1985)

_#_Organized labor: 12% of labor force; 7 unions currently active

_*_Government
_#_Long-form name: none

_#_Type: parliamentary democracy

_#_Capital: Belmopan

_#_Administrative divisions: 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal,
Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo

_#_Independence: 21 September 1981 (from UK; formerly British
Honduras)

_#_Constitution: 21 September 1981

_#_Legal system: English law

_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 21 September

_#_Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet

_#_Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly consists of an
upper house or Senate and a lower house or House of Representatives

_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court

_#_Leaders:

Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Dame Elmira Minita GORDON (since 21
September 1981);

Head of Government--Prime Minister George Cadle PRICE (since 4
September 1989)

_#_Political parties and leaders:
People's United Party (PUP), George PRICE, Florencio MARIN, Said MUSA;
United Democratic Party (UDP), Manuel ESQUIVEL, Dean LINDO, Dean BARROW;
Belize Popular Party (BPP), Louis SYLVESTRE

_#_Suffrage: universal at age 18

_#_Elections:

National Assembly--last held 4 September 1989 (next to be
held September 1994);
results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(28 total)
PUP 15 seats, UDP 13 seats; note--in January 1990 one
member expelled from UDP joined PUP, making the seat count
16 PUP, UDP 12

_#_Communists: negligible

_#_Other political or pressure groups: Society for the Promotion
of Education and Research (SPEAR) headed by former PUP minister;
United Workers Front

_#_Member of: ACP, C, CARICOM, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, (observer), ITU, LORCS,
NAM, OAS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WMO

_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador James V. HYDE; Chancery at
Suite 2J, 3400 International Drive NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone
(202) 363-4505;

US--Ambassador Eugene L.