Barbados (2003) | France (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status | 22 regions (regions, singular - region); Alsace, Aquitaine, Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Bretagne, Centre, Champagne-Ardenne, Corse, Franche-Comte, Haute-Normandie, Ile-de-France, Languedoc-Roussillon, Limousin, Lorraine, Midi-Pyrenees, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Pays de la Loire, Picardie, Poitou-Charentes, Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, Rhone-Alpes
note: metropolitan France is divided into 22 regions (including the "territorial collectivity" of Corse or Corsica) and is subdivided into 96 departments; see separate entries for the overseas departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion) and the overseas territorial collectivities (Mayotte, Saint Pierre, Miquelon) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.2% (male 29,621; female 29,207)
15-64 years: 70% (male 94,840; female 99,230) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,355; female 15,011) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 5,704,152/female 5,427,213)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 19,886,228/female 19,860,506) 65 years and over: 16.4% (male 4,103,883/female 5,894,154) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton | wheat, cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, wine grapes; beef, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 1 (2002) | 477 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 292
over 3,047 m: 13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 96 914 to 1,523 m: 81 under 914 m: 74 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 185
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 73 under 914 m: 108 (2006) |
Area | total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 547,030 sq km
land: 545,630 sq km water: 1,400 sq km note: includes only metropolitan France; excludes the overseas administrative divisions |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Colorado |
Background | The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. | Although ultimately a victor in World Wars I and II, France suffered extensive losses in its empire, wealth, manpower, and rank as a dominant nation-state. Nevertheless, France today is one of the most modern countries in the world and is a leader among European nations. Since 1958, it has constructed a presidential democracy resistant to the instabilities experienced in earlier parliamentary democracies. In recent years, its reconciliation and cooperation with Germany have proved central to the economic integration of Europe, including the introduction of a common exchange currency, the euro, in January 1999. At present, France is at the forefront of efforts to develop the EU's military capabilities to supplement progress toward an EU foreign policy. |
Birth rate | 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 11.99 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $1.06 trillion
expenditures: $1.144 trillion; including capital expenditures of $23 billion (2005 est.) |
Capital | Bridgetown | name: Paris
geographic coordinates: 48 52 N, 2 20 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to October) | generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral |
Coastline | 97 km | 3,427 km |
Constitution | 30 November 1966 | adopted by referendum 28 September 1958, effective 4 October 1958; amended concerning election of president in 1962; amended to comply with provisions of 1992 EC Maastricht Treaty, 1996 Amsterdam Treaty, 2000 Treaty of Nice; amended to tighten immigration laws in 1993; amended in 2000 to change the seven-year presidential term to a five-year term |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Barbados |
conventional long form: French Republic
conventional short form: France local long form: Republique francaise local short form: France |
Currency | Barbadian dollar (BBD) | - |
Death rate | 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.14 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $692 million (2002) | $2.826 trillion (30 June 2005) |
Dependent areas | - | Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, New Caledonia, Tromelin Island, Wallis and Futuna
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Earl N. PHILLIPS, Jr.
embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Craig R. STAPLETON
embassy: 2 Avenue Gabriel, 75382 Paris Cedex 08 mailing address: PSC 116, APO AE 09777 telephone: [33] (1) 43-12-22-22 FAX: [33] (1) 42 66 97 83 consulate(s) general: Marseille, Strasbourg |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING
chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 339-9201 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jean-David LEVITTE
chancery: 4101 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 944-6000 FAX: [1] (202) 944-6166 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | Madagascar claims the French territories of Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island; Comoros claims Mayotte; Mauritius claims Tromelin Island; territorial dispute between Suriname and the French overseas department of French Guiana; France asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Adelie Land); France and Vanuatu claim Matthew and Hunter Islands, east of New Caledonia |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $5.4 billion (2002) |
Economic aid - recipient | $9.1 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light-manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002 mainly due to a 3% decline in tourism. Growth should be positive in 2003, the precise level largely dependent on economic conditions in the US and Europe. | France is in the midst of transition from a well-to-do modern economy that has featured extensive government ownership and intervention to one that relies more on market mechanisms. The government has partially or fully privatized many large companies, banks, and insurers. It retains controlling stakes in several leading firms, including Air France, France Telecom, Renault, and Thales, and is dominant in some sectors, particularly power, public transport, and defense industries. The telecommunications sector is gradually being opened to competition. France's leaders remain committed to a capitalism in which they maintain social equity by means of laws, tax policies, and social spending that reduce income disparity and the impact of free markets on public health and welfare. The government has lowered income taxes and introduced measures to boost employment and reform the pension system. In addition, it is focusing on the problems of the high cost of labor and labor market inflexibility resulting from the 35-hour workweek and restrictions on lay-offs. The tax burden remains one of the highest in Europe (nearly 50% of GDP in 2005). The lingering economic slowdown and inflexible budget items have pushed the budget deficit above the eurozone's 3%-of-GDP limit; unemployment stands at 10%. |
Electricity - consumption | 725.4 million kWh (2001) | 433.3 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 72.2 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 6.2 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 780 million kWh (2001) | 536.9 billion kWh (2003) |
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 Hillaby 336 m |
lowest point: Rhone River delta -2 m
highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers | some forest damage from acid rain; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from urban wastes, agricultural runoff |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% | Celtic and Latin with Teutonic, Slavic, North African, Indochinese, Basque minorities |
Exchange rates | Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister 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 (since 17 May 1995)
head of government: Prime Minister Dominique DE VILLEPIN (since 31 May 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the suggestion of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (changed from seven-year term in October 2000); election last held 21 April and 5 May 2002 (next to be held, first round April 2007, second round May 2007); prime minister nominated by the National Assembly majority and appointed by the president election results: Jacques CHIRAC reelected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Jacques CHIRAC (RPR) 81.96%, Jean-Marie LE PEN (FN) 18.04% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 409,600 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components | machinery and transportation equipment, aircraft, plastics, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, beverages |
Exports - partners | US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) | Germany 14.7%, Spain 9.6%, Italy 8.7%, UK 8.3%, US 7.2%, Belgium 7.1% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, and red; known as the "Le drapeau tricolore" (French Tricolor), the origin of the flag dates to 1790 and the French Revolution; the design and/or colors are similar to a number of other flags, including those of Belgium, Chad, Ireland, Cote d'Ivoire, Luxembourg, and Netherlands; the official flag for all French dependent areas |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 2.2%
industry: 21.4% services: 76.4% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -2.8% (2002 est.) | 1.2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 10 N, 59 32 W | 46 00 N, 2 00 E |
Geography - note | easternmost Caribbean island | largest West European nation |
Heliports | - | 3 (2006) |
Highways | total: 1,793 km
paved: 1,719 km unpaved: 74 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.1% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center | transshipment point for and consumer of South American cocaine, Southwest Asian heroin, and European synthetics |
Imports | NA (2001) | 2.281 million bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components | machinery and equipment, vehicles, crude oil, aircraft, plastics, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) | Germany 18.9%, Belgium 10.7%, Italy 8.2%, Spain 7%, Netherlands 6.5%, UK 5.9%, US 5.1% (2005) |
Independence | 30 November 1966 (from UK) | 486 (unified by Clovis) |
Industrial production growth rate | -3.2% (2000 est.) | 0.2% (2005 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export | machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics; textiles, food processing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.39 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 4.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.6% (2002 est.) | 1.7% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FZ, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SECI (observer), SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 19 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 26,000 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) | Supreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (judges are appointed by the president from nominations of the High Council of the Judiciary); Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel (three members appointed by the president, three appointed by the president of the National Assembly, and three appointed by the president of the Senate); Council of State or Conseil d'Etat |
Labor force | 128,500 (2001 est.) | 27.72 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) | agriculture: 4.1%
industry: 24.4% services: 71.5% (1999) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,889 km
border countries: Andorra 56.6 km, Belgium 620 km, Germany 451 km, Italy 488 km, Luxembourg 73 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Spain 623 km, Switzerland 573 km |
Land use | arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 33.46%
permanent crops: 2.03% other: 64.51% (2005) |
Languages | English | French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish) |
Legal system | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts | civil law system with indigenous concepts; review of administrative but not legislative acts |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7 |
bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat (321 seats - 296 for metropolitan France, 13 for overseas departments and territories, and 12 for French nationals abroad; members are indirectly elected by an electoral college to serve nine-year terms; elected by thirds every three years); note - between 2004 and 2010, 25 new seats will be added to the Senate for a total of 346 seats - 326 for metropolitan France and overseas departments, 2 for New Caledonia, 2 for Mayotte, 1 for Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, 3 for overseas territories, and 12 for French nationals abroad; starting in 2008, members will be indirectly elected by an electoral college to serve six-year terms, with one-half the seats being renewed every three years; and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (577 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a single-member majority system to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 26 September 2004 (next to be held September 2008); National Assembly - last held 8-16 June 2002 (next to be held not later than June 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 156, PS 97, UDF 33, PCF 23, RDSE 15, other 7; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 355, PS 140, UDF 29, PCF 21, Left Radical Party 7, Greens 3, other 22 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.84 years
male: 69.56 years female: 74.14 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 79.73 years
male: 76.1 years female: 83.54 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (does not apply to the Mediterranean) continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 284,222 GRT/439,810 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 22, combination bulk 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, The Bahamas 1, Canada 4, Germany 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 7, Norway 7, UK 18 (2002 est.) |
total: 61 ships (1000 GRT or over) 875,777 GRT/1,318,605 DWT
by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 3, container 5, liquefied gas 6, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 32, petroleum tanker 10, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 13 (Denmark 1, Hong Kong 1, Italy 2, Monaco 1, Norway 1, NZ 1, Singapore 2, Sweden 2, Switzerland 2) registered in other countries: 154 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Australia 3, Bahamas 37, Bermuda 1, Cameroon 1, French Polynesia 1, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 36, Gibraltar 1, Indonesia 1, Isle of Man 2, Italy 1, South Korea 12, Liberia 3, Luxembourg 14, Malta 6, Mexico 1, Morocco 1, Panama 15, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 8, UK 4, Wallis and Futuna 5) (2006) |
Military branches | Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force | Army (includes marines, Foreign Legion, light aviation), Navy (includes naval air), Air Force (includes air defense), National Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $45 billion FY06 (2005) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.6% FY06 (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 77,862 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 53,282 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) | Fete de la Federation, 14 July (1790); note - although often incorrectly referred to as Bastille Day, the celebration actually commemorates the holiday held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille (on 14 July 1789) and the establishment of a constitutional monarchy; other names for the holiday are Fete Nationale (National Holiday) and quatorze juillet (14th of July) |
Nationality | noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French |
Natural hazards | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides | flooding; avalanches; midwinter windstorms; drought; forest fires in south near the Mediterranean |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, natural gas | coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorospar, gypsum, timber, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 14,588 km; oil 3,024 km; refined products 4,889 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] | Citizen and Republican Movement or MRC [Jean Pierre CHEVENEMENT]; Democratic and European Social Rally or RDSE (mainly Radical Republican and Socialist Parties, and PRG) [Jacques PELLETIER]; French Communist Party or PCF [Marie-George BUFFET]; Greens [Yan WEHRLING, national secretary]; Left Radical Party or PRG (previously Radical Socialist Party or PRS and the Left Radical Movement or MRG) [Jean-Michel BAYLET]; Movement for France or MPF [Philippe DE VILLIERS]; National Front or FN [Jean-Marie LE PEN]; Rally for France or RPF [Charles PASQUA]; Socialist Party or PS [Francois HOLLANDE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Francois BAYROU]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [Nicolas SARKOZY] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] | historically-Communist labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail) or CGT, approximately 700,000 members (claimed); left-leaning labor union (Confederation Francaise Democratique du Travail) or CFDT, approximately 889,000 members (claimed); independent labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail - Force Ouvriere) or FO, 300,000 members (est.); independent white-collar union (Confederation Generale des Cadres) or CGC, 196,000 members (claimed); employers' union (Mouvement des Entreprises de France) or MEDEF, 750,000 companies as members (claimed) |
Population | 277,264 (July 2003 est.) | 60,876,136 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 6.5% (2000) |
Population growth rate | 0.38% (2003 est.) | 0.35% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 41, FM about 3,500 (this figure is an approximation and includes many repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 29,085 km
standard gauge: 28,918 km 1.435-m gauge (14,481 km electrified) narrow gauge: 167 km 1.000-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% | Roman Catholic 83%-88%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 5%-10%, unaffiliated 4% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
general assessment: highly developed
domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay; extensive introduction of fiber-optic cable; domestic satellite system international: country code - 33; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (with total of 5 antennas - 2 for Indian Ocean and 3 for Atlantic Ocean), NA Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region); HF radiotelephone communications with more than 20 countries |
Telephones - main lines in use | 108,000 (1997) | 35.7 million (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,013 (1997) | 48.058 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) | 584 (plus 9,676 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region | mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially Pyrenees in south, Alps in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.84 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2001 est.) | 9.9% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | none | 8,500 km (1,686 km accessible to craft of 3,000 metric tons) (2000) |