French Guiana (2005) | Tajikistan (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 2 provinces (viloyatho, singular - viloyat) and 1 autonomous province* (viloyati mukhtor); Viloyati Mukhtori Kuhistoni Badakhshon* [Gorno-Badakhshan] (Khorugh), Viloyati Khatlon (Qurghonteppa), Viloyati Sughd (Khujand)
note: the administrative center name follows in parentheses |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 29.3% (male 29,262/female 27,947)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 67,895/female 58,534) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 6,038/female 5,830) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.5% (male 1,390,220/female 1,368,268)
15-64 years: 56.7% (male 2,022,764/female 2,040,524) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 150,372/female 191,358) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry | cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats |
Airports | 11 (2004 est.) | 55 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 17
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total: 38
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 35 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
total: 143,100 sq km
land: 142,700 sq km water: 400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | slightly smaller than Wisconsin |
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. | The Tajik people came under Russian rule in the 1860s and 1870s, but Russia's hold on Central Asia weakened following the Revolution of 1917. Bolshevik control of the area was fiercely contested and not fully reestablished until 1925. Tajikistan became independent in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union and has now completed its transition from the civil war that plagued the country from 1992 to 1997. There have been no major security incidents in recent years, although the country remains the poorest in the region. Attention by the international community in the wake of the war in Afghanistan has brought increased economic development assistance, which could create jobs and increase stability in the long term. Tajikistan is in the early stages of seeking World Trade Organization membership and has joined NATO's Partnership for Peace. |
Birth rate | 20.7 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 32.58 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
revenues: $311.2 million
expenditures: $321.5 million, including capital expenditures of $86 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | Cayenne | Dushanbe |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation | midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid to polar in Pamir Mountains |
Coastline | 378 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 6 November 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
conventional long form: Republic of Tajikistan
conventional short form: Tajikistan local long form: Jumhurii Tojikiston local short form: Tojikiston former: Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic |
Death rate | 4.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.39 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (1988) | $888 million (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard E. HOAGLAND
embassy: 10 Pavlova Street, Dushanbe, Tajikistan 734003; note - the embassy in Dushanbe is not yet fully operational; most business is still handled in Almaty at: 531 Sayfullin Street, Almaty, Kazakhstan, telephone 7-3272-58-79-61, FAX 7-3272-58-79-68 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [992] (372) 21-03-48, 21-03-52, 24-15-60 FAX: [992] (372) 21-03-62, 51-00-28 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Hamrohon ZARIPOV
chancery: 1725 K Street NW, Suite 409, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 223-6090 FAX: [1] (202) 223-6091 |
Disputes - international | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana | boundary agreements signed in 2002 cede 1,000 sq km of Pamir Mountain range to China in return for China relinquishing claims to 28,000 sq km of Tajikistani lands but neither state has published maps of ceded areas and demarcation has not yet commenced; talks continue with Uzbekistan to delimit border and remove minefields; disputes in Isfara Valley delay delimitation with Kyrgyzstan |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $60.7 million from US (2001) |
Economy - overview | The economy is tied closely to the much 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. | Tajikistan has one of the lowest per capita GDPs among the 15 former Soviet republics. Only 5% to 6% of the land area is arable. Cotton is the most important crop. Mineral resources, varied but limited in amount, include silver, gold, uranium, and tungsten. Industry consists only of a large aluminum plant, hydropower facilities, and small obsolete factories mostly in light industry and food processing. The civil war (1992-97) severely damaged the already weak economic infrastructure and caused a sharp decline in industrial and agricultural production. Even though 60% of its people continue to live in abject poverty, Tajikistan has experienced steady economic growth since 1997. Continued privatization of medium and large state-owned enterprises will further increase productivity. Tajikistan's economic situation, however, remains fragile due to uneven implementation of structural reforms, weak governance, widespread unemployment, and the external debt burden. A debt restructuring agreement was reached with Russia in December 2002, including an interest rate of 4%, a 3-year grace period, and a US $49.8 million credit to the Central Bank of Tajikistan. |
Electricity - consumption | 427.9 million kWh (2002) | 14.41 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 3.974 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 4.359 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 460.1 million kWh (2002) | 15.08 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
lowest point: Syr Darya (Sirdaryo) 300 m
highest point: Qullai Ismoili Somoni 7,495 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | inadequate sanitation facilities; increasing levels of soil salinity; industrial pollution; excessive pesticides |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, 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% | Tajik 79.9%, Uzbek 15.3%, Russian 1.1%, Kyrgyz 1.1%, other 2.6% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) | Tajikistani somoni per US dollar - 2.9705 (2004), 3.0614 (2003), 2.7641 (2002), 2.3722 (2001), 2.0763 (2000)
note: the new unit of exchange was introduced on 30 October 2000, with one somoni equal to 1,000 of the old Tajikistani rubles |
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: President Emomali RAHMONOV (since 6 November 1994; head of state and Supreme Assembly chairman since 19 November 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Oqil OQILOV (since 20 January 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Supreme Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 6 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president; Tajikistan held a constitutional referendum on 22 June 2003 that, among other things, set a limit of two seven-year terms for the president election results: Emomali RAHMONOV elected president; percent of vote - Emomali RAHMONOV 97%, Davlat USMON 2% |
Exports | NA | NA |
Exports - commodities | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing | aluminum, electricity, cotton, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles |
Exports - partners | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001) | Netherlands 41.4%, Turkey 15.3%, Uzbekistan 7.2%, Latvia 7.1%, Switzerland 6.9%, Russia 6.6% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | three horizontal stripes of red (top), a wider stripe of white, and green; a gold crown surmounted by seven gold, five-pointed stars is located in the center of the white stripe |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 23.7%
industry: 24.3% services: 52% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 10.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 53 00 W | 39 00 N, 71 00 E |
Geography - note | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent | landlocked; mountainous region dominated by the Trans-Alay Range in the north and the Pamirs in the southeast; highest point, Qullai Ismoili Somoni (formerly Communism Peak), was the tallest mountain in the former USSR |
Highways | total: 817 km (1998) | total: 27,767 km
paved: NA unpaved: NA (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe | major transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and, to a lesser extent, Western European markets; limited illicit cultivation of opium poppy for domestic consumption; Tajikistan seizes roughly 80 percent of all drugs captured in Central Asia and stands third worldwide in seizures of opiates (heroin and raw opium) |
Imports | NA | NA |
Imports - commodities | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals | electricity, petroleum products, aluminum oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.) | Russia 20.2%, Uzbekistan 14.2%, Kazakhstan 12.8%, Azerbaijan 7.2%, US 6.7%, China 4.8%, Ukraine 4.5% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 9 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 8.2% (2002 est.) |
Industries | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining | aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 12.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 110.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 122.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 98.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (2002 est.) | 8% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SCO, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (1998 est.) | 7,200 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 are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 58,800 (1997) | 3.187 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980) | agriculture 67.2%, industry 7.5%, services 25.3% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
total: 3,651 km
border countries: Afghanistan 1,206 km, China 414 km, Kyrgyzstan 870 km, Uzbekistan 1,161 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.14%
permanent crops: 0.05% other: 99.81% (90% forest, 10% other) (2001) |
arable land: 6.61%
permanent crops: 0.92% other: 92.47% (2001) |
Languages | French | Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and business |
Legal system | French legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts |
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 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 |
bicameral Supreme Assembly or Majlisi Oli consists of the Assembly of Representatives (lower chamber) or Majlisi Namoyandagon (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (upper chamber) or Majlisi Milliy (33 seats; members are indirectly elected, 25 selected by local deputies, 8 appointed by the president; all serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 February and 13 March 2000 for the Assembly of Representatives (next to be held NA 2010) and 23 March 2000 for the National Assembly (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Assembly of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDPT 74%, CPT 13%, Islamic Revival Party 8%, other 5%; seats by party - PDPT 49, CPT 4, Islamic Revival Party 2, independents 5, vacant 3; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.09 years
male: 73.77 years female: 80.58 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 64.56 years
male: 61.68 years female: 67.59 years (2005 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: 99.4% male: 99.6% female: 99.1% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname | Central Asia, west of China |
Map references | South America | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 3 | - |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $35.4 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 3.9% (FY01) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day (or National Day), 9 September (1991) |
Nationality | noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
noun: Tajikistani(s)
adjective: Tajikistani |
Natural hazards | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding | earthquakes and floods |
Natural resources | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay | hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, mercury, brown coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten, silver, gold |
Net migration rate | 5.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -2.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 541 km; oil 38 km (2004) |
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]; Socialist Party or PS [Paul DEBRIETTE]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (includes RPR) [Muriel ICARE]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] | Democratic Party or DPT [Mahmadruzi ISKANDAROV]; Islamic Revival Party [Said Abdullo NURI]; People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan or PDPT [Emomali RAHMONOV]; Social Democratic Party or SDPT [Rahmatullo ZOIROV]; Socialist Party or SPT [Mirhuseyn NAZRIYEV]; Tajik Communist Party or CPT [Shodi SHABDOLOV] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | there are three unregistered political parties: Agrarian Party or APT [Hikmatullo NASRIDDINOV]; Progressive Party [Sulton QUVVATOV]; Unity Party [Hikmatullo SAIDOV] |
Population | 195,506 (July 2005 est.) | 7,163,506 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 60% (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.1% (2005 est.) | 2.15% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Degrad des Cannes | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) | AM 8, FM 10, shortwave 2 (2002) |
Railways | - | total: 482 km
broad gauge: 482 km 1.520-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic | Sunni Muslim 85%, Shi'a Muslim 5%, other 10% (2003 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 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: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: poorly developed and not well maintained; many towns are not linked to the national network
domestic: cable and microwave radio relay international: country code - 992; linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; Dushanbe linked by Intelsat to international gateway switch in Ankara (Turkey); satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 2 Intelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,000 (2001) | 242,100 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 138,200 (2002) | 47,600 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) | 13 (2001) |
Terrain | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains | Pamir and Alay Mountains dominate landscape; western Fergana Valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest |
Total fertility rate | 3.01 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 4.05 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 22% (2001) | 40% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2004) |
200 km (along Vakhsh River) (2003) |