French Guiana (2006) | Nauru (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
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: 38.9% (male 2,517; female 2,368)
15-64 years: 59.3% (male 3,681; female 3,779) 65 years and over: 1.8% (male 116; female 109) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry | coconuts |
Airports | 11 (2006) | 1 (2002) |
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 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | about 0.1 times the size of 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. | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic. |
Birth rate | 20.46 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 26.09 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $135.5 million
expenditures: $135.5 million; including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 95/96) |
Capital | name: Cayenne
geographic coordinates: 4 56 N, 52 20 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 378 km | 30 km |
Constitution | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) | 29 January 1968 |
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 Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | - | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 4.88 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 7.08 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $800.3 million (2003) | $33.3 million |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
Disputes - international | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
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. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freeze on wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 432.6 million kWh (2003) | 27.9 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 465.2 million kWh (2003) | 30 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | 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: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
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 - 1.2641 (2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998) |
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: President Rene HARRIS (since 8 August 2003) note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Rene HARRIS (since 8 August 2003) note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 29 May 2003 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Ludwig SCOTTY elected president 29 May 2003; Ludwig SCOTTY 10 parliamentary votes, Kinza CLODUMAR 7 note: Ludwig SCOTTY was removed from the presidency in a no-confidence vote 8 August 2003; Rene HARRIS became president |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing | phosphates |
Exports - partners | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2004) | India 46.1%, South Korea 18.3%, Australia 10.6%, New Zealand 7.8%, Netherlands 5.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA% 6.6%
industry: NA% 15.6% services: NA% 77.8% |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 53 00 W | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
Highways | - | total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 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 | broad-based money-laundering center |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2004) | Australia 59.3%, US 10.1%, Ireland 7.6%, Malaysia 6% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
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: 10.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2003) | -3.6% (1993) |
International organization participation | UPU, WCL, WFTU | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, ICAO, ICCt, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 20 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
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 | 62,630 (1999) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 18.2%
industry: 21.2% services: 60.6% (1980) |
employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
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% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | French legal system | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
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 Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 3 May 2003 (next to be held not later than May 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - Nauru First Party 3, independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.27 years
male: 73.95 years female: 80.75 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 61.95 years
male: 58.41 years female: 65.66 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | South America | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Gendarmerie | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 3,190 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,762 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay | phosphates, fish |
Net migration rate | 4.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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] | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [leader NA]; Naoero Amo (Nauru First) Party [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 199,509 (July 2006 est.) | 12,570 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.96% (2006 est.) | 1.9% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 5 km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast (2001) |
Religions | Roman Catholic | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
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.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.06 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 51,000 (2001) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 98,000 (2004) | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 2.98 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.4 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 19.2% (December 2003) | 0% |
Waterways | 3,760 km
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2003) |
none |