French Guiana (2002) | Libya (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 25 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan; note - the 25 municipalities may have been replaced by 13 regions |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 34.5% (male 970,026; female 929,174)
15-64 years: 61.4% (male 1,744,992; female 1,630,399) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 109,262; female 115,221) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry | wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle |
Airports | 11 (2001) | 136 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 58
over 3,047 m: 23 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 22 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
total: 78
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 39 under 914 m: 18 (2002) |
Area | total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
total: 1,759,540 sq km
land: 1,759,540 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | slightly larger than Alaska |
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. | Since he took power in a 1969 military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI has espoused his own political system - a combination of socialism and Islam - which he calls the Third International Theory. Viewing himself as a revolutionary leader, he used oil funds during the 1970s and 1980s to promote his ideology outside Libya, even supporting subversives and terrorists abroad to hasten the end of Marxism and capitalism. Libyan military adventures failed, e.g., the prolonged foray of Libyan troops into the Aozou Strip in northern Chad was finally repulsed in 1987. Libyan support for terrorism decreased after UN sanctions were imposed in 1992. Those sanctions were suspended in April 1999. |
Birth rate | 21.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 27.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) (1996) |
revenues: $13.7 billion
expenditures: $8.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Cayenne | Tripoli |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation | Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior |
Coastline | 378 km | 1,770 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977 |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
conventional long form: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
conventional short form: Libya local long form: Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah al Uzma local short form: none |
Currency | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) | Libyan dinar (LYD) |
Death rate | 4.78 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 3.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (1988) (1988) | $4.4 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | the US suspended all embassy activities in Tripoli on 2 May 1980 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | Libya does not have an embassy in the US |
Disputes - international | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) | Libya has claimed more than 32,000 sq km in southeastern Algeria and about 25,000 sq km in Niger in currently dormant disputes; various Chadian rebels from the Aozou region reside in southern Libya |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $15 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | 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. | The socialist-oriented economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contribute practically all export earnings and about one-quarter of GDP. These oil revenues and a small population give Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs in Africa, but little of this income flows down to the lower orders of society. Import restrictions and inefficient resource allocations have led to periodic shortages of basic goods and foodstuffs. The nonoil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for about 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food. Higher oil prices in the last three years led to an increase in export revenues, which has improved macroeconomic balances but has done little to stimulate broad-based economic growth. Libya is making slow progress toward economic liberalization and the upgrading of economic infrastructure, but truly market-based reforms will be slow in coming. |
Electricity - consumption | 418.5 million kWh (2000) | 18.77 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 450 million kWh (2000) | 20.18 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m
highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources; the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% | Berber and Arab 97%, Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, Tunisians |
Exchange rates | 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) | Libyan dinars per US dollar - 1.2 (2003), 0.6 (2002), 0.51 (2001), 0.5 (2000), 0.39 (1999) |
Executive branch | 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 |
chief of state: Revolutionary Leader Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); note - holds no official title, but is de facto chief of state
head of government: Secretary of the General People's Committee (Premier) Mubarak al-SHAMEKH (since 2 March 2000) cabinet: General People's Committee established by the General People's Congress elections: national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of people's committees; head of government elected by the General People's Congress; election last held 2 March 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: Mubarak al-SHAMEKH elected premier; percent of General People's Congress vote - NA% |
Exports | $155 million f.o.b. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing | crude oil, refined petroleum products (1999) |
Exports - partners | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (1997) | Italy 42.6%, Germany 14.1%, Spain 13.6%, Turkey 6.9%, Switzerland 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $33.36 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 45% services: 46% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 1.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 53 00 W | 25 00 N, 17 00 E |
Geography - note | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent | more than 90% of the country is desert or semidesert |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 1,817 km
paved: 817 km unpaved: 1,000 km (1998) |
total: 83,200 km
paved: 47,590 km unpaved: 35,610 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe | - |
Imports | $625 million c.i.f. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals | machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods (1999) |
Imports - partners | France 52%, US 14%, Trinidad and Tobago 6% (1997) | Italy 25.6%, Germany 9.8%, South Korea 6.6%, UK 6.6%, Tunisia 6.5%, Japan 6.4%, France 5.7% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 24 December 1951 (from Italy) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining | petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement |
Infant mortality rate | 13.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 26.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 24.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (1992) (1992) | 1% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 1 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (1998 est.) | 4,700 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 |
Labor force | 58,800 (1997) (1997) | 1.5 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services, government, and commerce 61%, industry 21%, agriculture 18% (1980) | services 54%, industry 29%, agriculture 17% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
total: 4,348 km
border countries: Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,115 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.11% NEGL
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.) |
arable land: 1.03%
permanent crops: 0.17% other: 98.8% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French | Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities |
Legal system | French legal system | based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts; 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 - 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 |
unicameral General People's Congress (NA seats; members elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.49 years
male: 73.16 years female: 79.99 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 76.07 years
male: 73.91 years female: 78.34 years (2003 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 can read and write
total population: 82.6% male: 92.4% female: 72% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia |
Map references | South America | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 NM
note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 21 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 130,081 GRT/115,480 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, liquefied gas 3, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Algeria 1, Kuwait 1, UAE 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie | Armed Peoples on Duty (Army), Navy, Air and Air Defense Command (includes Air Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $1.3 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 3.9% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 50,504 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,546,432 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 32,720 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 914,649 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 61,511 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Revolution Day, 1 September (1969) |
Nationality | noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
noun: Libyan(s)
adjective: Libyan |
Natural hazards | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding | hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust storms, sandstorms |
Natural resources | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish | petroleum, natural gas, gypsum |
Net migration rate | 8.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 225 km; gas 3,196 km; oil 6,872 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | various Arab nationalist movements with almost negligible memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements |
Population | 182,333 (July 2002 est.) | 5,499,074
note: includes 166,510 non-nationals (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.57% (2002 est.) | 2.39% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni | Al Khums, Banghazi, Darnah, Marsa al Burayqah, Misratah, Ra's Lanuf, Tobruk, Tripoli, Zuwarah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) | AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 3 (2002) |
Radios | 104,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic | Sunni Muslim 97% |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: fair open wire and microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: telecommunications system is being modernized; mobile cellular telephone system became operational in 1996
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, cellular, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat, NA Arabsat, and NA Intersputnik; submarine cables to France and Italy; microwave radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric scatter to Greece; participant in Medarabtel (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 47,000 (1997) | 500,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 20,000 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) | 12 (plus one low-power repeater) (1999) |
Terrain | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains | mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions |
Total fertility rate | 3.13 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 3.49 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 21.4% (1998) (1998) | 30% (2001) |
Waterways | 3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |
none |