Bahamas, The (2008) | French Guiana (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 21 districts; Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island, Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay, Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence, Nichollstown and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound, Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27% (male 41,268/female 41,186)
15-64 years: 66.5% (male 99,961/female 103,230) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 8,176/female 11,834) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.9% (male 28,565; female 27,280)
15-64 years: 64.4% (male 64,836; female 55,498) 65 years and over: 5.7% (male 5,455; female 5,283) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | citrus, vegetables; poultry | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 62 (2007) | 11 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2007) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 22 (2007) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Area | total: 13,940 sq km
land: 10,070 sq km water: 3,870 sq km |
total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher COLUMBUS first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US and Europe, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US. | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
Birth rate | 17.3 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 21.33 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.03 billion
expenditures: $1.03 billion (FY04/05) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
Capital | name: Nassau
geographic coordinates: 25 05 N, 77 21 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November |
Cayenne |
Climate | tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 3,542 km | 378 km |
Constitution | 10 July 1973 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of The Bahamas
conventional short form: The Bahamas |
conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | - | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 9.13 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.8 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $342.6 million (2004 est.) | $1.2 billion (1988) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ned L. SIEGEL
embassy: 42 Queen Street, Nassau mailing address: local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; US Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370 telephone: [1] (242) 322-1181, 356-3229 (after hours) FAX: [1] (242) 356-0222 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Cornelius A. SMITH
chancery: 2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-2660 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2668 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | disagrees with the US on the alignment of a potential maritime boundary; continues to monitor and interdict drug dealers and Haitian refugees in Bahamian waters | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.78 million (2004) | $NA |
Economy - overview | The Bahamas is one of the wealthiest Caribbean countries with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven construction and manufacturing accounts for approximately 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but tourist arrivals have been on the decline since 2006. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy and, when combined with business services, account for about 36% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture combined contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector. Tourism, in turn, depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors. | The economy is tied closely to the larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.762 billion kWh (2005) | 423.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.894 billion kWh (2005) | 455 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
Environment - current issues | coral reef decay; solid waste disposal | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003) | Euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Arthur D. HANNA (since 1 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Hubert A. INGRAHAM (since 4 May 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's recommendation elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils |
Exports | transshipments of 41,290 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | Spain 22.3%, US 19.8%, Poland 13.5%, Germany 13%, UK 5.7%, Guatemala 4.9% (2006) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side | the flag of France is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $2.26 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 7% services: 90% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $14,400 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 24 15 N, 76 00 W | 4 00 N, 53 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba; extensive island chain of which 30 are inhabited | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 722 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: 27% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe; offshore financial center | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | 68,250 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 24.7%, Brazil 15.7%, Japan 13.1%, South Korea 7.8%, Spain 6.2% (2006) | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002) |
Independence | 10 July 1973 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 24.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 12.84 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.4% (2007 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (2003) | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Privy Council (London); Courts of Appeal; Supreme (lower) Court; magistrates courts | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 181,900 (2006) | 58,800 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (2005 est.) | services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2% (1980) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.58%
permanent crops: 0.29% other: 99.13% (2005) |
arable land: 0.11% NEGL
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants) | French |
Legal system | based on English common law | French legal system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16 seats; members appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader to serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (41 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms); the government may dissolve the Parliament and call elections at any time
elections: last held 2 May 2007 (next to be called by May 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - FNM 49.86%, PLP 47.02%; seats by party - FNM 23, PLP 18 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 65.66 years
male: 62.37 years female: 69.02 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 76.69 years
male: 73.36 years female: 80.18 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95.6% male: 94.7% female: 96.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1,213 ships (1000 GRT or over) 40,403,455 GRT/54,276,183 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 225, cargo 240, chemical tanker 84, combination ore/oil 13, container 72, liquefied gas 49, livestock carrier 2, passenger 117, passenger/cargo 34, petroleum tanker 196, refrigerated cargo 118, roll on/roll off 18, specialized tanker 4, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 39 foreign-owned: 1,134 (Angola 6, Australia 3, Belgium 15, Bermuda 12, Brazil 1, Canada 13, China 9, Croatia 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 20, Denmark 66, Finland 8, France 43, Germany 40, Greece 214, Hong Kong 3, Iceland 1, Indonesia 3, Ireland 2, Italy 1, Japan 62, Jordan 2, Kenya 1, Malaysia 11, Monaco 11, Montenegro 2, Netherlands 24, Nigeria 2, Norway 232, Philippines 1, Poland 15, Russia 5, Saudi Arabia 15, Singapore 9, Slovenia 1, South Africa 1, Spain 11, Sweden 5, Switzerland 2, Taiwan 1, Thailand 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Turkey 5, UAE 20, UK 68, US 162, Uruguay 1, Venezuela 1) registered in other countries: 3 (Barbados 1, Panama 2) (2007) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Royal Bahamian Defense Force: Land Force, Navy, Air Wing (2007) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.5% (2006) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 51,444 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 33,345 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 10 July (1973) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Bahamian(s)
adjective: Bahamian |
noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and other tropical storms cause extensive flood and wind damage | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | salt, aragonite, timber, arable land | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish |
Net migration rate | -2.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 7.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert INGRAHAM]; Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Perry CHRISTIE] | Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Roland HO-WEN-SZE]; Socialist Party or PS [Pierre RIBARDIERE]; Walwari Committee [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 305,655
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
186,917 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 9.3% (2004) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.602% (2007 est.) | 2.4% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2006) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Baptist 35.4%, Anglican 15.1%, Roman Catholic 13.5%, Pentecostal 8.1%, Church of God 4.8%, Methodist 4.2%, other Christian 15.2%, none or unspecified 2.9%, other 0.8% (2000 census) | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.002 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.968 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.691 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern facilities
domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed; the Bahamas Domestic Submarine Network links 14 of the islands and is designed to satisfy increasing demand for voice and broadband internet services international: country code - 1-242; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic submarine cable that provides links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station - 2 (2007) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 133,100 (2005) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 227,800 (2005) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2006) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.15 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3.09 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.6% (2006 est.) | 22% (2001) |
Waterways | - | 3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |