French Polynesia (2001) | Dominica (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 5 archipelagic divisions named Archipel des Marquises, Archipel des Tuamotu, Archipel des Tubuai, Iles du Vent, and Iles Sous-le-Vent
note: Clipperton Island is administered by France from French Polynesia |
10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.74% (male 38,473; female 36,925) 15-64 years: 65.17% (male 86,128; female 79,076) 65 years and over: 5.09% (male 6,481; female 6,423) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.3% (male 9,563; female 9,349)
15-64 years: 64.8% (male 23,097; female 21,804) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 2,209; female 3,256) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits; poultry, beef, dairy products | bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited |
Airports | 45 (2000 est.) | 2 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
32 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
13 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls) land: 3,660 sq km water: 507 sq km |
total: 754 sq km
land: 754 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut | slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996. | Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763, which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining in the eastern Caribbean. |
Birth rate | 18.6 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.25 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1 billion expenditures: $900 million, including capital expenditures of $185 million (1996) |
revenues: $73.9 million
expenditures: $84.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2001) |
Capital | Papeete | Roseau |
Climate | tropical, but moderate | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall |
Coastline | 2,525 km | 148 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 3 November 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of French Polynesia conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Territoire de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica |
Currency | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 4.45 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.9 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $161.5 million (2001) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of France since 1946 | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of France) | the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Dominica |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Swinburne LESTRADE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea |
Economic aid - recipient | $367 million (1997) | $22.8 million (2003 est.) |
Economy - overview | Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefited from a five-year (1994-98) development agreement with France aimed principally at creating new jobs. | The Dominican economy depends on agriculture, primarily bananas, and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions and international economic developments. Production of bananas dropped precipitously in 2003, a major reason for the 1% decline in GDP. Tourism increased in 2003 as the government sought to promote Dominica as an "ecotourism" destination. Development of the tourism industry remains difficult, however, because of the rugged coastline, lack of beaches, and the absence of an international airport. The government began a comprehensive restructuring of the economy in 2003 - including elimination of price controls, privatization of the state banana company, and tax increases - to address Dominica's economic crisis and to meet IMF targets. In order to diversify the island's production base the government is attempting to develop an offshore financial sector and is planning to construct an oil refinery on the eastern part of the island. |
Electricity - consumption | 399.9 million kWh (1999) | 67.35 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 430 million kWh (1999) | 72.41 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
51.16% hydro: 48.84% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4% | black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 127.11 (January 2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998), 106.11 (1997), 93.00 (1996); note - pegged at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Paul RONCIERE (since NA 1994) head of government: President of the Territorial Government of French Polynesia Gaston FLOSSE (since 4 April 1991); President of the Territorial Assembly Justin ARAPARI (since 13 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers; president submits a list of members of the Territorial Assembly for approval by them to serve as ministers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Government and the president of the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
chief of state: President Nicholas J. O. LIVERPOOL (since October 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Roosevelt SKERRIT (since 8 January 2004); note - assumed post after death of Prime Minister Pierre CHARLES cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by the House of Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 1 October 2003 (next to be held NA October 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Nicholas LIVERPOOL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA |
Exports | $205 million (f.o.b., 1999) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cultured pearls 50%, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat (1997) | bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges |
Exports - partners | Japan 62%, US 21% (1999) | UK 20%, Jamaica 18.5%, Antigua and Barbuda 7.7%, US 7.7%, Guyana 6.2%, Japan 6.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.6% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions | green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - the vertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and the horizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed in the center of the cross is a red disk bearing a sisserou parrot encircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10 stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.6 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $380 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
4% industry: 18% services: 78% (1997) |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 24% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,800 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (1997 est.) | -1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 S, 140 00 W | 15 25 N, 61 20 W |
Geography - note | includes five archipelagoes; Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru | known as "The Nature Island of the Caribbean" due to its spectacular, lush, and varied flora and fauna, which are protected by an extensive natural park system; the most mountainous of the Lesser Antilles, its volcanic peaks are cones of lava craters and include Boiling Lake, the second-largest, thermally active lake in the world |
Highways | total:
792 km paved: 264 km unpaved: 528 km (2000) |
total: 780 km
paved: 393 km unpaved: 387 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor cannabis producer; anti-money-laundering enforcement is weak, making the country particularly vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $749 million (f.o.b., 1999) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, foodstuffs, equipment | manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 53%, US 13%, Australia 10% (1999) | US 18.5%, China 18%, Trinidad and Tobago 14.6%, Japan 6.3%, South Korea 5.4%, UK 5.4% (2003) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of France) | 3 November 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -10% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts | soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes |
Infant mortality rate | 9.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 14.75 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 19.49 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (1994) | 1% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WMO | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court of Appeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the six judges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 70,000 (1996) | 25,000 (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 13%, industry 19%, services 68% (1997) | agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 31% other: 57% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 6.67%
permanent crops: 20% other: 73.33% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Tahitian (official) | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | based on French system | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 12 May 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 22, Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia 10, New Fatherland Party 5, other 4 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 24 September 1989 (next to be held NA September 1998); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UC 1; two 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 - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 2 |
unicameral House of Assembly (30 seats, 9 appointed senators, 21 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 31 January 2000 (next to be held by 17 July 2005); note - tradition dictates that the election will be held within five years of the last election, but technically it is five years from the first seating of parliament (17 April 2000) plus a 90 day grace period election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - DLP 10, UWP 9, DFP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.01 years male: 72.67 years female: 77.46 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.38 years
male: 71.48 years female: 77.43 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 14 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1977 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 94% male: 94% female: 94% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,240 GRT/7,765 DWT ships by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 13,771 GRT/19,736 DWT
by type: cargo 3, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Bahamas 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 1, Greece 1, Panama 1, Singapore 1 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French Forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | no regular military forces; Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force (including Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 3 November (1978) |
Nationality | noun:
French Polynesian(s) adjective: French Polynesian |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | occasional cyclonic storms in January | flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the late summer months |
Natural resources | timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower | timber, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | 3.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -13.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Union or UC [leader NA]; Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]; New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]; People's Rally for the Republic (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE] | Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP [Roosevelt SKERRIT]; United Workers Party or UWP [Edison JAMES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party) |
Population | 253,506 (July 2001 est.) | 69,278 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.72% (2001 est.) | -0.45% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mataura, Papeete, Rikitea, Uturoa | Portsmouth, Roseau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 14, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 128,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 16% | Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fully automatic network international: country code - 1-767; microwave radio relay and SHF radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 52,000 (1997) | 23,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 5,427 (1997) | 9,400 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (plus 17 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 1 (2004) |
Terrain | mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs | rugged mountains of volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 2.23 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1992 est.) | 23% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |