Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2004) - French Guiana (2003)

Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2004) z French Guiana (2003)

	Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2004)	French Guiana (2003)

Administrative divisions	10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu	none (overseas department of France)
Age structure	0-14 years: 48.2% (male 14,122,237; female 14,008,654) 15-64 years: 49.3% (male 14,097,301; female 14,646,285) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 590,262; female 853,191) (2004 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	coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products	corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry
Airports	230 (2003 est.)	11 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 24 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (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: 206 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 92 under 914 m: 97 (2004 est.)	total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002)
Area	total: 2,345,410 sq km land: 2,267,600 sq km water: 77,810 sq km	total: 91,000 sq km land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US	slightly smaller than Indiana
Background	Since 1997, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC; formerly called Zaire) has been rent by ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow in 1994 of refugees from the fighting in Rwanda and Burundi. The government of former president MOBUTU Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent KABILA in May 1997; his regime was subsequently challenged by a Rwanda- and Uganda-backed rebellion in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state ten days later. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, the Pretoria Accord was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a government of national unity. A transitional government was set up in July 2003; Joseph KABILA remains as president and is joined by four vice presidents from the former government, former rebel camps, and the political opposition.	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	44.73 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	21.33 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $269 million expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.)	revenues: $225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996)
Capital	Kinshasa	Cayenne
Climate	tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season April to October	tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation
Coastline	37 km	378 km
Constitution	a new constitution was adopted 17 July 2003	28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name	conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo conventional short form: none local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo local short form: none former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire abbreviation: DROC	conventional long form: Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane
Currency	Congolese franc (CDF)	euro (EUR); French franc (FRF)
Death rate	14.64 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	4.8 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$11.6 billion (2000 est.)	$1.2 billion (1988)
Dependency status	-	overseas department of France
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828 telephone: [243] (88) 43608 FAX: [243] (88) 43467	none (overseas department of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Faida MITIFU chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691 FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609	none (overseas department of France)
Disputes - international	Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war, tribal conflict, and rebel gang fighting that has drawn in neighboring states of Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda; in the Great Lakes region and Sudan, heads of the Great Lakes states and UN pledge to end conflict, but unchecked localized violence continues unabated; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area	Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa)
Economic aid - recipient	$195.3 million (1995)	$NA
Economy - overview	The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. The war, which began in August 1998, has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue, has increased external debt, and has resulted in the deaths from war, famine, and disease of perhaps 3.5 million people. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. Conditions improved in late 2002 with the withdrawal of a large portion of the invading foreign troops. Several IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan, and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms. Much economic activity lies outside the GDP data. Economic stability, aided by international donors, improved in 2003. New mining contracts have been approved, which - combined with high mineral and metal prices - could improve Kinshasa's fiscal position and GDP growth.	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	3.839 billion kWh (2001)	423.2 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	1.097 billion kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	60 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	5.243 billion kWh (2001)	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: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m
Environment - current issues	poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage	NA
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	-
Ethnic groups	over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population	black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10%
Exchange rates	Congolese francs per US dollar - NA (2003), 346.485 (2002), 206.617 (2001), 21.82 (2000), 4.02 (1999)	Euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president elections: prior to the overthrow of MOBUTU Sese Seko, the president was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997); formerly, there was also a prime minister who was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - a Transitional Government is drafting a new constitution with free elections scheduled to be held in NA 2005 election results: results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition note: Joseph KABILA succeeded his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, following the latter's assassination in January 2001, negotiations with rebel leaders led to the establishment of a transitional government in July 2003 with free elections scheduled to be held in NA 2005	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)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt	shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing
Exports - partners	Belgium 54.9%, US 15.4%, Zimbabwe 11.1%, Finland 4.8% (2003)	France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side	the flag of France is used
GDP	purchasing power parity - $40.05 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $2.26 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 55% industry: 11% services: 34% (2000 est.)	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $700 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $14,400 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	6.5% (2003 est.)	NA%
Geographic coordinates	0 00 N, 25 00 E	4 00 N, 53 00 W
Geography - note	straddles equator; has very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands	mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent
Highways	total: 157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1999 est.)	total: 722 km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1996)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center	small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels	food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals
Imports - partners	South Africa 17%, Belgium 14.9%, France 12.6%, Germany 6.8%, Kenya 5.4%, Netherlands 4% (2003)	France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002)
Independence	30 June 1960 (from Belgium)	none (overseas department of France)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	NA%
Industries	mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement	construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining
Infant mortality rate	total: 94.69 deaths/1,000 live births male: 103.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 85.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 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)	14% (2003 est.)	1.5% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW (signatory), PCA, SADC, 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	110 sq km (1998 est.)	20 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme	Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)
Labor force	14.51 million (1993 est.)	58,800 (1997)
Labor force - by occupation	NA	services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2% (1980)
Land boundaries	total: 10,730 km border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km	total: 1,183 km border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km
Land use	arable land: 2.96% permanent crops: 0.52% other: 96.52% (2001)	arable land: 0.11% NEGL permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.)
Languages	French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba	French
Legal system	based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	French legal system
Legislative branch	a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in August 2000 elections: NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were appointed by former President Laurent Desire KABILA	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: 49.14 years male: 47.06 years female: 51.28 years (2004 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 French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba total population: 65.5% male: 76.2% female: 55.1% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.)
Location	Central Africa, northeast of Angola	Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname
Map references	Africa	South America
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	none	none (2002 est.)
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force	no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$115.5 million (2003)	$NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.4% (2003)	NA%
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 12,706,971 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 51,444 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 6,480,645 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 33,345 (2003 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 30 June (1960)	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality	noun: Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo	noun: French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese
Natural hazards	periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes	high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding
Natural resources	cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber	bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish
Net migration rate	-0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: fighting between the Congolese Government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese internally displaced and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries (2004 est.)	7.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines	gas 54 km; oil 71 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Forces for Renovation for Union and Solidarity or FONUS [Joseph OLENGHANKOY]; National Congolese Lumumbist Movement or MNC [Francois LUMUMBA]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR (three factions: MPR-Fait Prive [Catherine NZUZI wa Mbombo]; MPR/Vunduawe [Felix VUNDUAWE]; MPR/Mananga [MANANGA Dintoka Mpholo]); Unified Lumumbast Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI (two factions: UFERI [Lokambo OMOKOKO]; UFERI/OR [Adolph Kishwe MAYA])	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	58,317,930 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 2004 est.)	186,917 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	NA%
Population growth rate	2.99% (2004 est.)	2.4% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka	Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001)	AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998)
Railways	total: 5,138 km narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2003)	0 km
Religions	Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10%	Roman Catholic
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 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: 1.12 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal and compulsory	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: poor domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 243; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	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	10,000 (2002)	47,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1 million (2003)	NA
Television broadcast stations	4 (2001)	3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east	low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains
Total fertility rate	6.62 children born/woman (2004 est.)	3.09 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA (2003 est.)	22% (2001)
Waterways	15,000 km (navigation on the Congo curtailed by fighting) (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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