French Guiana (2006) | Cocos (Keeling) Islands (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.9% (male 29,540/female 28,210)
15-64 years: 64.8% (male 69,302/female 59,980) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 6,350/female 6,127) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
Agriculture - products | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry | vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts |
Airports | 11 (2006) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2006) |
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Area | total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
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. | There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. From the 1820s to 1978, members of the CLUNIE-ROSS family controlled the islands and the copra produced from local coconuts. Annexed by the UK in 1857, the Cocos Islands were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. |
Birth rate | 20.46 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues: $135.5 million
expenditures: $135.5 million; including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | name: Cayenne
geographic coordinates: 4 56 N, 52 20 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: West Island
geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 96 50 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year |
Coastline | 378 km | 26 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
Death rate | 4.88 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $800.3 million (2003) | - |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $NA |
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. | Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. |
Electricity - consumption | 432.6 million kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - production | 465.2 million kWh (2003) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs |
Ethnic groups | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% | Europeans, Cocos Malays |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Pierre LAFLAQUIERE (since 19 July 2006)
head of government: President of the General Council Pierre DESERT (since 26 March 2004); 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $NA |
Exports - commodities | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing | copra |
Exports - partners | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2004) | Australia (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | the flag of Australia is used |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA% 6.6%
industry: NA% 15.6% services: NA% 77.8% |
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GDP - real growth rate | NA% | - |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 53 00 W | 12 30 S, 96 50 E |
Geography - note | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent | islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Illicit drugs | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe | - |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $NA |
Imports - commodities | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals | foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2004) | Australia (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
Industries | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining | copra products and tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 11.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 12.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2003) | - |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | none |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (2003) | NA |
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; Magistrate's Court |
Labor force | 62,630 (1999) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 18.2%
industry: 21.2% services: 60.6% (1980) |
note: the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others |
Land boundaries | total: 1,240.4 km
border countries: Brazil 730.4 km, Suriname 510 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.13%
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 99.83% (90% forest, 10% other) (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | French | Malay (Cocos dialect), English |
Legal system | French legal system | based upon the laws of Australia and local laws |
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 in March 2000 (next to be held March 2006); Regional Council - last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010) 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 - (second election results) percent of vote by party - PS 37.24%, UMP 31.58%, FDG/Walwari 31.18%; seats by party - PS 17, UMP 7, FDG/Walwari 7 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 in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.27 years
male: 73.95 years female: 80.75 years (2006 est.) |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
NA |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname | Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka |
Map references | South America | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander |
Natural hazards | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding | cyclone season is October to April |
Natural resources | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay | fish |
Net migration rate | 4.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA |
Political parties and leaders | Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Alix LABBE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Georges HABRAN-MERY]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (includes RPR) [Remi Louis DUBOC]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 199,509 (July 2006 est.) | 596 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | - |
Population growth rate | 1.96% (2006 est.) | 0% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic | Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 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 (2006 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA |
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: connected within Australia's telecommunication system
domestic: NA international: country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,000 (2001) | 287 (1992) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 98,000 (2004) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) | NA |
Terrain | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains | flat, low-lying coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 2.98 children born/woman (2006 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | 19.2% (December 2003) | 60% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2003) |
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