Croatia (2003) | French Guiana (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.3% (male 415,873; female 394,414)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 1,465,488; female 1,454,778) 65 years and over: 15.6% (male 258,943; female 432,752) (2003 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 | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 59 (2002) | 11 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 16
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 34 (2002) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Area | total: 56,542 sq km
land: 56,414 sq km water: 128 sq km |
total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than West Virginia | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. | 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 | 12.76 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 21.33 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $8.6 billion
expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
Capital | Zagreb | Cayenne |
Climate | Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km) | 378 km |
Constitution | adopted on 22 December 1990 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia local long form: Republika Hrvatska local short form: Hrvatska |
conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | kuna (HRK) | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 11.25 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.8 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $16.5 billion (yearend 2002 est.) | $1.2 billion (1988) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ralph FRANK
embassy: Thomasa Jeffersona 2, 10010 Zagreb mailing address: use street address telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200 FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899 FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | discussions continue with Bosnia and Herzegovina on sections of the Una River and villages at the base of Mount Pljesevica; parliamentarians are far from ratifying the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Pirin Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia; in late 2002, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro adopted an interim agreement to settle the disputed Prevlaka Peninsula, allowing the withdrawal of the UN monitoring mission (UNMOP), but discussions could be complicated by the inability of Serbia and Montenegro to come to an agreement on the economic aspects of the new federal union; Croatia and Italy continue to debate bilateral property and ethnic minority rights issues stemming from border changes after the Second World War | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA $66 million (2000) | $NA |
Economy - overview | Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions. Opponents fear reforms would cut jobs, wages, and social benefits. The government has a heavy backload of civil cases, many involving tenure land. The country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform. | 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 | 14.27 billion kWh (2001) | 423.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 386 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 3.386 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 12.12 billion kWh (2001) | 455 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 33.6%
hydro: 66% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
- |
Ethnic groups | Croat 89.6%, Serb 4.5%, Bosniak 0.5%, Hungarian 0.4%, Slovene 0.3%, Czech 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Albanian 0.1%, Montenegrin 0.1%, others 4.1% (2001) | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | kuna per US dollar - 7.87 (2002), 8.34 (2001), 8.28 (2000), 7.11 (1999), 6.36 (1998) | Euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since 30 July 2002), Zeljka ANTUNOVI (since 27 January 2000), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44% note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a sixth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001 |
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 | transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | Italy 22.4%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 14.4%, Germany 12.5%, Slovenia 8%, Austria 7.3% (2002) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $43.12 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.26 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9%
industry: 33% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,800 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $14,400 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.2% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 45 10 N, 15 30 E | 4 00 N, 53 00 W |
Geography - note | controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 28,123 km
paved: 23,792 km (including 410 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,331 km (2000) |
total: 722 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 23.3% (1998) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | Italy 16.8%, Germany 16.4%, Slovenia 7.8%, Russia 6.8%, Austria 6.7%, France 5.2% (2002) | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002) |
Independence | 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.8% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Industries | chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.92 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 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) | 2.2% (2002 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 9 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 1.7 million (2001) | 58,800 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 13.2% NA, industry 25.4% NA, services 46.4% NA (2002) | services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2% (1980) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,197 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km |
total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 23.55%
permanent crops: 2.24% other: 74.21% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.11% NEGL
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.) |
Languages | Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) | French |
Legal system | based on civil law system | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly or Sabor (152 seats; note - one seat was added in the November Parliamentary elections; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001
elections: Assembly - last held 23 November 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - HDZ 43.4%, SDP 23%, HNS 7.4%, HSS 6.57%, HSP 6%; seats by party - HDZ 66, SDP 34, HNS 10, HSS 9, HSP 7; note - these are preliminary results |
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: 74.37 years
male: 70.76 years female: 78.2 years (2003 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: 98.5% male: 99.4% female: 97.8% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | Europe | South America |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 56 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 765,830 GRT/1,188,948 DWT
ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 16, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 6, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $520 million (2002 est.) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.39% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,081,135 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 51,444 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 856,946 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 33,345 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 30,096 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)
adjective: Croatian |
noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish |
Net migration rate | 1.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,374 km; oil 583 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Croatian Bloc or HB [Ivic PASALIC]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Anto KOVACEVIC]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Anto DJAPIC]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Democratic Centre or DC [Mate GRANIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LS [Ivo BANAC]; Party of Liberal Democrats or LIBRA [Goran GRANIC]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria |
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 | 4,422,248 (July 2003 est.) | 186,917 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.31% (2003 est.) | 2.4% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Railways | total: 2,296 km
standard gauge: 2,296 km 1.435-m gauge (983 km electrified) (2002) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, Muslim 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, others and unknown 6.2% (2001) | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 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 (16 years of age, if employed) | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk international: digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project, which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
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 | 1,721,139 (2000) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.3 million (2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.93 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.09 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 21.7% (2002 est.) | 22% (2001) |
Waterways | 785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |
3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |