Jan Mayen (2004) | Reunion (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
32.07% (male 120,259; female 114,669) 15-64 years: 62.25% (male 224,347; female 231,698) 65 years and over: 5.68% (male 16,892; female 24,705) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 373 sq km
land: 373 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
2,512 sq km land: 2,502 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | This desolate, mountainous island was named after a Dutch whaling captain who indisputably discovered it in 1614 (earlier claims are inconclusive). Visited only occasionally by seal hunters and trappers over the following centuries, the island came under Norwegian sovereignty in 1929. The long dormant Haakon VII Toppen/Beerenberg volcano resumed activity in 1970; it is the northernmost active volcano on earth. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | - | 21.26 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues:
NA expenditures: NA |
Capital | - | Saint-Denis |
Climate | arctic maritime with frequent storms and persistent fog | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
Coastline | 124.1 km | 207 km |
Constitution | - | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jan Mayen |
conventional long form:
Department of Reunion conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Currency | - | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) |
Death rate | - | 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $NA |
Dependency status | territory of Norway; since August 1994, administered from Oslo through the county governor (fylkesmann) of Nordland; however, authority has been delegated to a station commander of the Norwegian Defense Communication Service | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France |
Economy - overview | Jan Mayen is a volcanic island with no exploitable natural resources. Economic activity is limited to providing services for employees of Norway's radio and meteorological stations on the island. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to more than 40% of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
54.55% hydro: 45.45% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Norwegian Sea 0 m
highest point: Haakon VII Toppen/Beerenberg 2,277 m |
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Ethnic groups | - | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | - | euros per US dollar - 1.06594 (January 2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Robert POMMIES (since NA 1996) head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) 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 the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | - | $214 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | - | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) |
Exports - partners | - | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (1994) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Norway is used | the flag of France is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 3.8% (1998 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 71 00 N, 8 00 W | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | barren volcanic island with some moss and grass | - |
Highways | - | total:
2,724 km paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km note: 370 km of road are maintained by national authorities, 754 km by departmental authorities and 1600 km by local authorities (1994) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | - | $2.5 billion (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | - | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | - | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (1994) |
Independence | - | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | - | 8.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | NA% |
International organization participation | - | FZ, InOC, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | 60 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | - | 261,000 (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 8%, industry 19%, services 73% (1990) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land:
17% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 35% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
Languages | - | French (official), Creole widely used |
Legal system | the laws of Norway, where applicable, apply | French law |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral General Council (47 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 1994 (next to be held NA 2000); 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 - PCR 12, PS 12, UDF 11, RPR 5, others 7; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 7, UDF 8, PS 6, RPR 4, various right-wing candidates 15, various left-wing candidates 5 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held 14 April 1996 (next to be held NA 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 1, PCR 2; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 25 May and 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 3, PS 1, and RPR-UDF 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population:
72.93 years male: 69.53 years female: 76.49 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79% male: 76% female: 80% (1982 est.) |
Location | Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the Norwegian Sea, northeast of Iceland | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Arctic Region | World |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 4 nm
contiguous zone: 10 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT ships by type: chemical tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Norway | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | - | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
190,846 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
97,497 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
6,243 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | - | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | - | noun:
Reunionese (singular and plural) adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | dominated by the volcano Haakon VII Toppen/Beerenberg; volcanic activity resumed in 1970 | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | none | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: personnel operate the Long Range Navigation (Loran-C) base and the weather and coastal services radio station (July 2004 est.) |
732,570 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 1.57% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Le Port, Pointe des Galets |
Radio broadcast stations | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: there is one radio and meteorological station (1998) |
AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 173,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
Sex ratio | - | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment:
adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis domestic: modern open wire and microwave radio relay network international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 236,500 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 85,000 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 22 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic island, partly covered by glaciers | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | - | 2.58 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 42.8% (1998) |
Waterways | - | none |