Aruba (2001) | New Caledonia (2005) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
21.29% (male 7,709; female 7,193) 15-64 years: 68.52% (male 23,111; female 24,859) 65 years and over: 10.19% (male 2,954; female 4,181) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 29% (male 32,030/female 30,714)
15-64 years: 64.6% (male 70,294/female 69,506) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 6,513/female 7,437) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | aloes; livestock; fish | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 25 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
193 sq km land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s has dissipated. |
Birth rate | 12.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.49 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $541 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Oranjestad | Noumea |
Climate | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
Coastline | 68.5 km | 2,254 km |
Constitution | 1 January 1986 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Aruba |
conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
Currency | Aruban guilder/florin (AWG) | - |
Death rate | 6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.65 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $285 million (1996) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs | overseas territory of France since 1956 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Consul General Barbara J. STEPHENSON embassy: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 461-3066 FAX: [599] (9) 461-6489 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | none | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
Economic aid - recipient | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 | $880 million annual subsidy from France (1998) |
Economy - overview | Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy, although offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and less than 1% unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than one-fourth of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. |
Electricity - consumption | 418.5 million kWh (1999) | 1.471 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 450 million kWh (1999) | 1.581 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
Ethnic groups | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.7900 (fixed rate since 1986) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.43 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July 1994) and Deputy Prime Minister Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 12 July 1997 (next to be held by December 2001) election results: Jan (Henny) H. EMAN elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA%; Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ elected deputy prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
chief of state: President of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Michel MATHIEU (since 15 July 2005)
head of government: President of the Government Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU (since 10 June 2004) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 29 June 2004 when Marie-Noelle THEMEREAU was elected on the third vote with 8 votes for and 3 abstentions |
Exports | $2.2 billion (including oil reexports) (2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
Exports - partners | US 42%, Colombia 20%, Netherlands 12% (1999) | Japan 22%, France 16.5%, Taiwan 12.3%, South Korea 12%, Spain 6.3%, Australia 6.1%, China 4.8%, South Africa 4.5% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 N, 69 58 W | 21 30 S, 165 30 E |
Geography - note | - | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls |
Heliports | - | 6 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
800 km paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
total: 5,432 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | drug-money-laundering center and transit point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US 63%, Netherlands 11%, Netherlands Antilles 3%, Japan (1999) | France 40.3%, Singapore 10.9%, Australia 9.1%, New Zealand 4.9% (2004) |
Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -0.6% (1996) |
Industries | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining | nickel mining and smelting |
Infant mortality rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.42 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.2% (2000 est.) | -0.6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WToO (associate) | FZ, ICFTU, PIF (observer), UPU, WFTU, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
Irrigated land | 0.01 sq km | 160 sq km (1991) |
Judicial branch | Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the monarch) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
Labor force | 41,501 (1997 est.) | 79,400 (including 15,018 unemployed) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% (including aloe 0.01%) permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 93% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (2001) |
Languages | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
Legal system | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held by NA December 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - AVP 43%, MEP 39%, OLA 9% PPA 4%, ADN 2%, PARA 1%, MAS 0.5%; seats by party - AVP 10, MEP 9, OLA 2 |
unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members belong to the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR-UMP 16, AE 16, UNI-FLNKS 8, UC 7, FN 4, others 3 note: New Caledonia currently holds 1 seat in the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2007; between now and 2010 New Caledonia will gain a second seat in the French Senate); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.52 years male: 75.16 years female: 82.04 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.04 years
male: 71.07 years female: 77.16 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,120 GRT/3,635 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
National holiday | Flag Day, 18 March | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Aruban(s) adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
Natural hazards | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
Natural resources | NEGL; white sandy beaches | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
Net migration rate | NEGL | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Tico CROES]; Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson ODUBER]; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA [leader NA]; National Democratic Action or ADN [Pedro Charro KELLY] | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Caleonian Union or UC [leader NA]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR-UMP [Jacques LAFLEUR]; The Future Together or AE [Harold MARTIN]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 70,007 (July 2001 est.) | 216,494 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.64% (2001 est.) | 1.28% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas | Noumea |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 50,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: more than adequate international: 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 687; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,000 (1997) | 52,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,402 (1997) | 80,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation | coastal plains with interior mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.31 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0.6% (1999 est.) | 19% (1996) |
Waterways | none | - |