Guadeloupe (2001) | Paraguay (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 17 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital city*; Alto Paraguay, Alto Parana, Amambay, Asuncion*, Boqueron, Caaguazu, Caazapa, Canindeyu, Central, Concepcion, Cordillera, Guaira, Itapua, Misiones, Neembucu, Paraguari, Presidente Hayes, San Pedro |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
24.99% (male 55,030; female 52,722) 15-64 years: 66.22% (male 141,294; female 144,232) 65 years and over: 8.79% (male 15,901; female 21,991) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.2% (male 1,262,408/female 1,220,809)
15-64 years: 57.7% (male 1,933,559/female 1,915,033) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 155,660/female 181,617) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, sugarcane, tropical fruits and vegetables; cattle, pigs, goats | cotton, sugarcane, soybeans, corn, wheat, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), fruits, vegetables; beef, pork, eggs, milk; timber |
Airports | 9 (2000 est.) | 838 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
8 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 5 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 825
1,524 to 2,437 m: 26 914 to 1,523 m: 267 under 914 m: 532 (2007) |
Area | total:
1,780 sq km land: 1,706 sq km water: 74 sq km note: Guadeloupe is an archipelago of nine inhabited islands, including Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Desirade, Iles des Saintes (2), Saint-Barthelemy, Iles de la Petite Terre, and Saint-Martin (French part of the island of Saint Martin |
total: 406,750 sq km
land: 397,300 sq km water: 9,450 sq km |
Area - comparative | 10 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than California |
Background | Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint-Martin is divided with the Netherlands (whose southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles). | In the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance (1865-70) - between Paraguay and Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay - Paraguay lost two-thirds of all adult males and much of its territory. It stagnated economically for the next half century. In the Chaco War of 1932-35, large, economically important areas were won from Bolivia. The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo STROESSNER was overthrown in 1989, and, despite a marked increase in political infighting in recent years, relatively free and regular presidential elections have been held since then. |
Birth rate | 16.91 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 28.77 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$225 million expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
revenues: $1.705 billion
expenditures: $1.658 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Basse-Terre | name: Asuncion
geographic coordinates: 25 16 S, 57 40 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately high humidity | subtropical to temperate; substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, becoming semiarid in the far west |
Coastline | 306 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | promulgated 20 June 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Department of Guadeloupe conventional short form: Guadeloupe local long form: Departement de la Guadeloupe local short form: Guadeloupe |
conventional long form: Republic of Paraguay
conventional short form: Paraguay local long form: Republica del Paraguay local short form: Paraguay |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | - |
Death rate | 6.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.54 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $3.362 billion (2006 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | Ambassador James C. CASON
embassy: 1776 Avenida Mariscal Lopez, Casilla Postal 402, Asuncion mailing address: Unit 4711, APO AA 34036-0001 telephone: [595] (21) 213-715 FAX: [595] (21) 213-728 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador James SPALDING Hellmers
chancery: 2400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-6960 through 6962 FAX: [1] (202) 234-4508 consulate(s) general: Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York |
Disputes - international | none | unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual French subsidies | $NA (2005) |
Economy - overview | The economy depends on agriculture, tourism, light industry, and services. It also depends on France for large subsidies and imports. Tourism is a key industry, with most tourists from the US; an increasingly large number of cruise ships visit the islands. The traditional sugarcane crop is slowly being replaced by other crops, such as bananas (which now supply about 50% of export earnings), eggplant, and flowers. Other vegetables and root crops are cultivated for local consumption, although Guadeloupe is still dependent on imported food, mainly from France. Light industry features sugar and rum production. Most manufactured goods and fuel are imported. Unemployment is especially high among the young. Hurricanes periodically devastate the economy. | Landlocked Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector. This sector features both reexport of imported consumer goods to neighboring countries, as well as the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. Because of the importance of the informal sector, accurate economic measures are difficult to obtain. A large percentage of the population derives its living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis. On a per capita basis, real income has stagnated at 1980 levels. Most observers attribute Paraguay's poor economic performance to political uncertainty, corruption, lack of progress on structural reform, substantial internal and external debt, and deficient infrastructure. Aided by a firmer exchange rate and perhaps a greater confidence in the economic policy of the DUARTE FRUTOS administration, the economy rebounded between 2003 and 2006, posting modest growth each year. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.209 billion kWh (1999) | 4.497 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 43.79 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.3 billion kWh (1999) | 50.66 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Soufriere 1,467 m |
lowest point: junction of Rio Paraguay and Rio Parana 46 m
highest point: Cerro Pero (Cerro Tres Kandu) 842 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | deforestation; water pollution; inadequate means for waste disposal pose health risks for many urban residents; loss of wetlands |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black or mulatto 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Lebanese, Chinese less than 5% | mestizo (mixed Spanish and Amerindian) 95%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | Euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) | guarani per US dollar - 5,672.8 (2006), 6,178 (2005), 5,974.6 (2004), 6,424.3 (2003), 5,716.3 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean FEDINI (since NA 1996) head of government: President of the General Council Marcellin LUBETH (since NA March 1998); President of the Regional Council Lucette MICHAUX-CHEVRY (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils election results: NA |
chief of state: President Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS (since 15 August 2003); Vice President Francisco OVIEDO Britez (since 21 November 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS (since 15 August 2003); Vice President Francisco OVIEDO Britez (since 21 November 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single five-year term; election last held 27 April 2003 (next to be held in April 2008) election results: Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS elected president; percent of vote - Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS 37.1%, Julio Cesar Ramon FRANCO Gomez 23.9%, Pedro Nicolas Maraa FADUL Niella 21.3%, Guillermo SANCHEZ Guffanti 13.5%, other 4.2% |
Exports | $140 million (f.o.b., 1997) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | bananas, sugar, rum | soybeans, feed, cotton, meat, edible oils, electricity, wood, leather |
Exports - partners | France 60%, Martinique 18%, US 4% (1997) | Uruguay 22%, Brazil 17.2%, Russia 11.9%, Argentina 8.8%, Chile 6.9% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands, a narrow green band (top), a wide red band, and a narrow green band; the green bands are separated from the red band by two narrow white stripes; a gold five-pointed star is centered in the red band toward the hoist side; the flag of France is used for official occasions | three equal, horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue with an emblem centered in the white band; unusual flag in that the emblem is different on each side; the obverse (hoist side at the left) bears the national coat of arms (a yellow five-pointed star within a green wreath capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within two circles); the reverse (hoist side at the right) bears the seal of the treasury (a yellow lion below a red Cap of Liberty and the words Paz y Justicia (Peace and Justice) capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within two circles) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.7 billion (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 17% services: 68% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 21.4%
industry: 18.6% services: 60.1% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,000 (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 15 N, 61 35 W | 23 00 S, 58 00 W |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; lies between Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil; population concentrated in southern part of country |
Highways | total:
2,560 km paved: 965 km unpaved: 1,595 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.7%
highest 10%: 46.1% (2003) |
Illicit drugs | - | major illicit producer of cannabis, most or all of which is consumed in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile; transshipment country for Andean cocaine headed for Brazil, other Southern Cone markets, and Europe; corruption and some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; weak anti-money-laundering laws and enforcement |
Imports | $1.7 billion (c.i.f., 1997) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, fuels, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods, construction materials | road vehicles, consumer goods, tobacco, petroleum products, electrical machinery |
Imports - partners | France 63%, Germany 4%, US 3%, Japan 2%, Netherlands Antilles 2% (1997) | China 27%, Brazil 20%, Argentina 13.6%, Japan 8.3%, US 6.4% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 14 May 1811 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 0% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, cement, rum, sugar, tourism | sugar, cement, textiles, beverages, wood products, steel, metallurgic, electric power |
Infant mortality rate | 9.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 26.45 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 30.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 9.6% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | CAN (associate), CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1993 est.) | 670 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel with jurisdiction over Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Martinique | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges appointed on the proposal of the Council of Magistrates or Consejo de la Magistratura) |
Labor force | 125,900 (1997) | 2.706 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture: 45%
industry: NA% services: NA% (2003) |
Land boundaries | total:
10.2 km border countries: Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 10.2 km |
total: 3,995 km
border countries: Argentina 1,880 km, Bolivia 750 km, Brazil 1,365 km |
Land use | arable land:
14% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 14% forests and woodland: 39% other: 29% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 7.47%
permanent crops: 0.24% other: 92.29% (2005) |
Languages | French (official) 99%, Creole patois | Spanish (official), Guarani (official) |
Legal system | French legal system | based on Argentine codes, Roman law, and French codes; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (42 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2004); 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 - diverse left parties 11, PS 8, RPR 8, PPDG 6, diverse right parties 5, PCG 3, UDF 1; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - RPR 48.03%, PS/PPDG/diverse left parties 24.49%, PCG 5.29%, diverse right parties 5.73%; seats by party - RPR 25, PS/PPDG/diverse left parties 12, PCG 2, diverse right parties 2 note: Guadeloupe elects two representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1995 (next to be held NA September 2004); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RPR 1, FGPS 1; Guadeloupe elects four representatives to the French National Assembly; elections last held 25 May - 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FGPS 2, RPR 1, PPDG 1 |
bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (80 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 27 April 2003 (next to be held in April 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 27 April 2003 (next to be held in April 2008) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ANR 16, PLRA 12, UNACE 7, PQ 7, PPS 2, PEN 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ANR 37, PLRA 21, UNACE 10, PQ 10, PPS 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
77.16 years male: 74.01 years female: 80.48 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.34 years
male: 72.78 years female: 78.02 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90% male: 90% female: 90% (1982 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94% male: 94.9% female: 93% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, islands in the eastern Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico | Central South America, northeast of Argentina |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,240 GRT/109 DWT ships by type: passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 39,693 GRT/43,530 DWT
by type: cargo 16, container 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 5 (Argentina 3, Netherlands 1, Switzerland 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French Forces, Gendarmerie | Army, National Navy (Armada Nacional, includes Naval Aviation, Marine Corps, General Naval Prefecture), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Paraguay, FAP) (2006) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1% (2006 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 14 May 1811 (observed 15 May) |
Nationality | noun:
Guadeloupian(s) adjective: Guadeloupe |
noun: Paraguayan(s)
adjective: Paraguayan |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (June to October); Soufriere is an active volcano | local flooding in southeast (early September to June); poorly drained plains may become boggy (early October to June) |
Natural resources | cultivable land, beaches and climate that foster tourism | hydropower, timber, iron ore, manganese, limestone |
Net migration rate | -0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Communist Party of Guadeloupe or PCG [Christian CELESTE]; Progressive Democratic Party or PPDG [Henri BANGOU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Aldo BLAISE]; Socialist Party or PS [Georges LOUISOR]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Marcel ESDRAS] | Asociacion Nacional Republicana - Colorado Party or ANR [Jose A. ALDERETE]; Movimiento Union Nacional de Ciudadanos Eticos or UNACE [Enrique GONZALEZ Quintana]; Patria Querida (Beloved Fatherland Party) or PQ [Pedro Nicolas Maraa FADUL Niella]; Partido Encuentro Nacional or PEN [Luis TORALES Kennedy]; Partido Liberal Radical Autentico or PLRA [Blas LLANO]; Partido Pais Solidario or PPS [Carlos Alberto FILIZZOLA Pallares]
note: Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS on leave as party leader of the Colorado Party or ANR while serving as President of Paraguay; Lino Cesar OVIEDO Silva, leader of UNACE, is currently serving a ten-year prison term |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Christian Movement for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or KLPG; General Federation of Guadeloupe Workers or CGT-G; General Union of Guadeloupe Workers or UGTG; Movement for Independent Guadeloupe or MPGI | Ahorristas Estafados or AE; National Coordinating Board of Campesino Organizations or MCNOC [Luis AGUAYO]; National Federation of Campesinos or FNC [Odilon ESPINOLA]; National Workers Central or CNT [Secretary General Juan TORRALES]; Paraguayan Workers Confederation or CPT; Roman Catholic Church; Unitary Workers Central or CUT [Jorge Guzman ALVARENGA Malgarejo] |
Population | 431,170 (July 2001 est.) | 6,669,086 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 32% (2005 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.07% (2001 est.) | 2.416% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Basse-Terre, Gustavia (on Saint Barthelemy), Marigot, Pointe-a-Pitre | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 17, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 46, FM 27, shortwave 6 (3 inactive) (1998) |
Radios | 113,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
NA km; privately owned, narrow-gauge plantation lines |
total: 36 km
standard gauge: 36 km 1.435-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 4%, Protestant 1% | Roman Catholic 89.6%, Protestant 6.2%, other Christian 1.1%, other or unspecified 1.9%, none 1.1% (2002 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.034 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.857 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory up to age 75 |
Telephone system | general assessment:
domestic facilities inadequate domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay to Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and Martinique |
general assessment: meager telephone service; principal switching center is in Asuncion
domestic: fair microwave radio relay network international: country code - 595; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 171,000 (1996) | 331,100 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 3.233 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (plus several low-power repeaters) (1997) | 5 (2003) |
Terrain | Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior mountains; Grande-Terre is low limestone formation; most of the seven other islands are volcanic in origin | grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay; Gran Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near the river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere |
Total fertility rate | 1.93 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.84 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.8% (1998) | 9.4% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | none | 3,100 km (2007) |