French Guiana (2001) | Jamaica (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
30.47% (male 27,669; female 26,428) 15-64 years: 64.05% (male 61,457; female 52,266) 65 years and over: 5.48% (male 4,937; female 4,805) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.2% (male 390,966; female 372,961)
15-64 years: 65% (male 883,053; female 880,296) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 82,788; female 103,066) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, vegetables, poultry, goats, milk, crustaceans, and mollusks |
Airports | 11 (2000 est.) | 35 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
91,000 sq km land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
Background | 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. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a drop off in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 22.02 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.94 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
revenues: $2.596 billion
expenditures: $3.111 billion, including capital expenditures of $236 million (2003 est.) |
Capital | Cayenne | Kingston |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 378 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 6 August 1962 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
Death rate | 4.77 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (1988) | $4.962 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 935-6001 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $16 million (2003) |
Economy - overview | The economy is tied closely to that of France through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou, fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry which 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. | The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for 70% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. The global economic slowdown, particularly after the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001, stunted economic growth; the economy rebounded moderately in 2003, with one of the best tourist seasons on record. But the economy faces serious long-term problems: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a sizable merchandise trade deficit; large-scale unemployment; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy. The ratio of debt to GDP is close to 150%. Inflation, previously a bright spot, is expected to remain in the double digits. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. In 2004, the government faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 409.2 million kWh (1999) | 5.833 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 440 million kWh (1999) | 6.272 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: 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, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | Euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 57.7409 (2003), 48.4159 (2002), 45.9962 (2001), 42.7011 (2000), 39.0435 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Dominique VIAN (since NA January 1997) head of government: President of the General Council Andre LECANTE (since NA March 1998); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-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 |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) 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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | $155 million (f.o.b., 1997) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing | alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels |
Exports - partners | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (1997) | US 29.6%, UK 11%, Canada 10.8%, France 7.9%, Norway 6.8%, Germany 6.2%, China 6%, Netherlands 4.4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.61 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 6.7%
industry: 37.2% services: 56.2% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,900 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 1.9% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 53 00 W | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | mostly an unsettled wilderness | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Highways | total:
1,817 km paved: 817 km unpaved: 1,000 km (1998) |
total: 18,700 km
paved: 13,109 km unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 30.3% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | $625 million (c.i.f., 1997) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals | food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials |
Imports - partners | France 52%, US 14%, Trinidad and Tobago 6% (1997) | US 39.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 9.7%, Germany 5.6%, Venezuela 4.5%, France 4.5%, Japan 4.2% (2003) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining | tourism, bauxite/alumina, textiles, agro processing, wearing apparel, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications |
Infant mortality rate | 13.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (1992) | 10.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (1993 est.) | 250 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 58,800 (1997) | 1.13 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | services, government, and commerce 60.6%, industry 21.2%, agriculture 18.2% (1980) | agriculture 21%, industry 19%, services 60% (1998) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,183 km border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 90% other: 10% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 10.16% other: 73.77% (2001) |
Languages | French | English, patois English |
Legal system | French legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | 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 - NA; 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 25 May - 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1, PSG 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held in October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
76.3 years male: 72.97 years female: 79.79 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 76.07 years
male: 74.04 years female: 78.21 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | South America | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 74,881 GRT/100,682 DWT
by type: bulk 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, short-sea/passenger 1 foreign-owned: Greece 2, Iceland 1, Latvia 1, United States 2 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French Forces, Gendarmerie | Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $31 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.4% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
49,495 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 764,266 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
32,052 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 533,768 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 27,126 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 10.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -4.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Guianese Socialist Party or PSG [Antoine KARAM]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Roland HO-WEN-SZE]; Socialist Party or PS [Pierre RIBARDIERE] (may be a subset of PSG); Walwari Committee [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Hyacinth BENNETT]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 177,562 (July 2001 est.) | 2,713,130 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 19.7% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.74% (2001 est.) | 0.66% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 104,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km (1995) | total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge note: 207 of these km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation had been in common carrier service until 1992 but are no longer operational; 57 km of the remaining track is privately owned and used by ALCAN to transport bauxite (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.18 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: fair open wire and microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-876; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 47,000 (1997) | 444,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 1.4 million (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 3.17 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 21.4% (1998) | 15.9% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |
- |