Compare Colombia (2004) - French Guiana (2002)

Compare Colombia (2004) z French Guiana (2002)

	Colombia (2004)	French Guiana (2002)

Administrative divisions	32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, Distrito Capital de Bogota*, Bolivar, Boyaca, Caldas, Caqueta, Casanare, Cauca, Cesar, Choco, Cordoba, Cundinamarca, Guainia, Guaviare, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Narino, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Quindio, Risaralda, San Andres y Providencia, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes, Vichada	none (overseas department of France)
Age structure	0-14 years: 31% (male 6,644,080; female 6,489,677) 15-64 years: 63.9% (male 13,171,416; female 13,879,115) 65 years and over: 5% (male 940,762; female 1,185,725) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 30.2% (male 28,140; female 26,876) 15-64 years: 64.2% (male 63,183; female 53,902) 65 years and over: 5.6% (male 5,192; female 5,040) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp	corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry
Airports	980 (2003 est.)	11 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 101 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 39 under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.)	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 879 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 272 under 914 m: 572 (2004 est.)	total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002)
Area	total: 1,138,910 sq km land: 1,038,700 sq km water: 100,210 sq km note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, Serrana Bank, and Serranilla Bank	total: 91,000 sq km land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly less than three times the size of Montana	slightly smaller than Indiana
Background	Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and Venezuela). A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian Government escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds from the drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence, the movement lacks the military strength or popular support necessary to overthrow the government. An anti-insurgent army of paramilitaries has grown to be several thousand strong in recent years, challenging the insurgents for control of territory and the drug trade, and also the government's ability to exert its dominion over rural areas. While Bogota steps up efforts to reassert government control throughout the country, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders.	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	21.19 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	21.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget	revenues: $24 billion expenditures: $25.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) (1996)
Capital	Bogota	Cayenne
Climate	tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands	tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation
Coastline	3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km)	378 km
Constitution	5 July 1991	28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Colombia conventional short form: Colombia local long form: Republica de Colombia local short form: Colombia	conventional long form: Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane
Currency	Colombian peso (COP)	euro (EUR); French franc (FRF)
Death rate	5.61 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	4.78 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external	$38.26 billion (2003 est.)	$1.2 billion (1988) (1988)
Dependency status	-	overseas department of France
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador William B. WOOD embassy: Calle 22D-BIS, numbers 47-51, Apartado Aereo 3831 mailing address: Carrera 45 #22D-45, Bogota, D.C., APO AA 34038 telephone: [57] (1) 315-0811 FAX: [57] (1) 315-2197	none (overseas department of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Alberto MORENO Mejia chancery: 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-8338 FAX: [1] (202) 232-8643 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Washington, DC consulate(s): Atlanta	none (overseas department of France)
Disputes - international	Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; maritime boundary dispute with Venezuela in the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian drug activities penetrate Peruvian border area; the continuing civil disorder in Colombia has created a serious refugee crisis in neighboring states, especially Ecuador	Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa)
Economic aid - recipient	NA	$NA
Economy - overview	Colombia's economy suffers from weak domestic and foreign demand, austere government budgets, and serious internal armed conflict, but seems poised for recovery. Other economic problems facing President URIBE range from reforming the pension system to reducing high unemployment. Two of Colombia's leading exports, oil and coffee, face an uncertain future; new exploration is needed to offset declining oil production, while coffee harvests and prices are depressed. On the positive side, several international financial institutions have praised the economic reforms introduced by URIBE, which includes measures designed to reduce the public-sector deficit below 2.5% of GDP in 2004. The government's economic policy and democratic security strategy have engendered a growing sense of confidence in the economy, particularly within the business sector, and GDP growth in 2003 was among the highest in Latin America.	The economy is tied closely to the French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou, 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	39.81 billion kWh (2001)	418.5 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports	210 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports	40 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production	42.99 billion kWh (2001)	450 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions	NA
Environment - international agreements	party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea	-
Ethnic groups	mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%	black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10%
Exchange rates	Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,877.65 (2003), 2,504.24 (2002), 2,299.63 (2001), 2,087.9 (2000), 1,756.23 (1999)	Euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet consists of a coalition of the two dominant parties - the PL and PSC - and independents elections: president and vice president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006) election results: President Alvaro URIBE Velez received 53% of the vote; Vice President Francisco SANTOS was elected on the same ticket	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	NA (2001)	$155 million f.o.b. (1997)
Exports - commodities	petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers	shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing
Exports - partners	US 47.1%, Ecuador 6%, Venezuela 5.3% (2003)	France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (1997)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and red; similar to the flag of Ecuador, which is longer and bears the Ecuadorian coat of arms superimposed in the center	the flag of France is used
GDP	purchasing power parity - $263.2 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 13.7% industry: 32.1% services: 54.2% (2003 est.)	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $6,000 (1998 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.7% (2003 est.)	NA%
Geographic coordinates	4 00 N, 72 00 W	4 00 N, 53 00 W
Geography - note	only South American country with coastlines on both North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea	mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent
Heliports	1 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 110,000 km paved: 26,000 km unpaved: 84,000 km (2000)	total: 1,817 km paved: 817 km unpaved: 1,000 km (1998)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 1% highest 10%: 44% (1999)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2002 was 144,450 hectares, a 15% decline since 2001); potential production of opium between 2001 and 2002 declined by 25% to 91 metric tons; potential production of heroin declined to 11.3 metric tons; the world's largest processor of coca derivatives into cocaine; supplier of about 90% of the cocaine to the US market and the great majority of cocaine to other international drug markets; important supplier of heroin to the US market; active aerial eradication program; a significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Colombia through the black market peso exchange	small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe
Imports	NA (2001)	$625 million c.i.f. (1997)
Imports - commodities	industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity	food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals
Imports - partners	US 29.6%, Brazil 5.5%, Mexico 5.4%, Venezuela 5.2%, China 5%, Japan 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2003)	France 52%, US 14%, Trinidad and Tobago 6% (1997)
Independence	20 July 1810 (from Spain)	none (overseas department of France)
Industrial production growth rate	3.5% (2003 est.)	NA%
Industries	textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds	construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
Infant mortality rate	total: 21.72 deaths/1,000 live births male: 25.69 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	13.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	7.1% (2003 est.)	2.5% (1992) (1992)
International organization participation	BCIE, CAN, CDB, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	FZ, WCL, WFTU
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	2 (2000)
Irrigated land	8,500 sq km (1998 est.)	20 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	four roughly coequal, supreme judicial organs; Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (highest court of criminal law; judges are selected by their peers from the nominees of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Council of State (highest court of administrative law; judges are selected from the nominees of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Constitutional Court (guards integrity and supremacy of the constitution; rules on constitutionality of laws, amendments to the constitution, and international treaties); Superior Judicial Council (administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; resolves jurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members are elected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms)	Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)
Labor force	20.34 million (2003 est.)	58,800 (1997) (1997)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 30%, industry 24%, services 46% (1990)	services, government, and commerce 61%, industry 21%, agriculture 18% (1980)
Land boundaries	total: 6,004 km border countries: Brazil 1,643 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km, Peru 1,496 km (est.), Venezuela 2,050 km	total: 1,183 km border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km
Land use	arable land: 2.42% permanent crops: 1.67% other: 95.91% (2001)	arable land: 0.11% NEGL permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.)
Languages	Spanish	French
Legal system	based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US procedures was enacted in 1992-93; judicial review of executive and legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations	French legal system
Legislative branch	bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Senate or Senado (102 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006); House of Representatives - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 28, PSC 13, independents and smaller parties (many aligned with conservatives) 61; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 54, PSC 21, independents and other parties 91	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: 71.43 years male: 67.58 years female: 75.41 years (2004 est.)	total population: 76.49 years male: 73.16 years female: 79.99 years (2002 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.5% male: 92.4% female: 92.6% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.)
Location	Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama	Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname
Map references	South America	South America
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 35,427 GRT/46,301 DWT by type: bulk 4, cargo 5, container 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 2 registered in other countries: 16 (2004 est.)	none (2002 est.)
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches	Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, including Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana)	no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$3.3 billion (FY01)	$NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.4% (FY01)	NA%
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 11,252,027 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 50,504 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 7,495,462 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 32,720 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 392,656 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 20 July (1810)	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality	noun: Colombian(s) adjective: Colombian	noun: French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese
Natural hazards	highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts	high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding
Natural resources	petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower	bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish
Net migration rate	-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	8.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines	gas 4,360 km; oil 6,134 km; refined products 3,140 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Conservative Party or PSC [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Liberal Party or PL [Camilo SANCHEZ]; Colombian Communist Party or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; Democratic Pole or PDI [Antonio NAVARRO Wolff] note: Colombia has about 60 formally recognized political parties, most of which do not have a presence in either house of Congress	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	two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and National Liberation Army or ELN; largest anti-insurgent paramilitary group is United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC	NA
Population	42,310,775 (July 2004 est.)	182,333 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line	55% (2001)	NA%
Population growth rate	1.53% (2004 est.)	2.57% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors	Bahia de Portete, Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Leticia, Puerto Bolivar, San Andres, Santa Marta, Tumaco, Turbo	Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni
Radio broadcast stations	AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999)	AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998)
Radios	-	104,000 (1997)
Railways	total: 3,304 km standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (2003)	0 km
Religions	Roman Catholic 90%	Roman Catholic
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 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: 1.13 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern system in many respects domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system; domestic satellite system with 41 earth stations; fiber-optic network linking 50 cities international: country code - 57; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers; 8 submarine cables	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	8,768,100 (2003)	47,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular	6,186,200 (2003)	NA
Television broadcast stations	60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997)	3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains	low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains
Total fertility rate	2.59 children born/woman (2004 est.)	3.13 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate	14.2% (2003 est.)	21.4% (1998) (1998)
Waterways	9,187 km (2004)	3,300 km navigable by native craft note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers

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