Luxembourg (2001) | Guernsey (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 districts; Diekirch, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg | none (British crown dependency); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 10 parishes including Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson, Vale, Castel, Saint Saviour, Saint Pierre du Bois, Torteval, Forest, Saint Martin, Saint Andrew |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
18.91% (male 43,051; female 40,711) 15-64 years: 67.03% (male 149,781; female 147,165) 65 years and over: 14.06% (male 24,921; female 37,343) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.8% (male 5,216; female 5,061)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 21,433; female 21,835) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 4,705; female 6,568) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, oats, potatoes, wheat, fruits, wine grapes; livestock products | tomatoes, greenhouse flowers, sweet peppers, eggplant, fruit; Guernsey cattle |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
2,586 sq km land: 2,586 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 78 sq km
land: 78 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | about one-half the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Founded in 963, Luxembourg became a grand duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839, but gained a larger measure of autonomy. Full independence was attained in 1867. Overrun by Germany in both World Wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community (later the European Union) and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area. | The island of Guernsey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy, which held sway in both France and England. The islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. |
Birth rate | 12.25 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$5.6 billion expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $381.3 million
expenditures: $368.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Luxembourg | Saint Peter Port |
Climate | modified continental with mild winters, cool summers | temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 50 km |
Constitution | 17 October 1868, occasional revisions | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
Country name | conventional long form:
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg conventional short form: Luxembourg local long form: Grand Duche de Luxembourg local short form: Luxembourg |
conventional long form: Bailiwick of Guernsey
conventional short form: Guernsey |
Currency | Luxembourg franc (LUF); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Luxembourg at a fixed rate of 40.3399 Luxembourg francs per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Guernsey pound |
Death rate | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $NA |
Dependency status | - | British crown dependency |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador James C. HORMEL embassy: 22 Boulevard Emmanuel-Servais, L-2535 Luxembourg City mailing address: American Embassy Luxembourg, Unit 1410, APO AE 09126-1410 (official mail); American Embassy Luxembourg, PSC 9, Box 9500, APO AE 09123 (personal mail) telephone: [352] 46 01 23 FAX: [352] 46 14 01 |
none (British crown dependency) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Arlette CONZEMIUS chancery: 2200 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-4171 FAX: [1] (202) 328-8270 consulate(s) general: New York and San Francisco |
none (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $160 million (1999) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | The stable, high-income economy features solid growth, low inflation, and low unemployment. The industrial sector, initially dominated by steel, has become increasingly diversified to include chemicals, rubber, and other products. Growth in the financial sector has more than compensated for the decline in steel. Services, especially banking, account for a substantial proportion of the economy. Agriculture is based on small family-owned farms. The economy depends on foreign and trans-border workers for 30% of its labor force. Luxembourg has a custom union with Belgium and the Netherlands, and, as a member of the EU, enjoys the advantages of the open European market. It joined with 10 other EU members to launch the euro on 1 January 1999. | Financial services - banking, fund management, insurance, etc. - account for about 55% of total income in this tiny Channel Island economy. Tourism, manufacturing, and horticulture, mainly tomatoes and cut flowers, have been declining. Light tax and death duties make Guernsey a popular tax haven. The evolving economic integration of the EU nations is changing the rules of the game under which Guernsey operates. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.149 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 655 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 6.201 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 648 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
36.88% hydro: 53.09% nuclear: 0% other: 10.03% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Moselle River 133 m highest point: Buurgplaatz 559 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Sark 114 m |
Environment - current issues | air and water pollution in urban areas, soil pollution of farmland | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Environmental Modification |
- |
Ethnic groups | Celtic base (with French and German blend), Portuguese, Italian, Slavs (from Montenegro, Albania, and Kososvo) and European (guest and resident workers) | UK and Norman-French descent |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Luxembourg francs per US dollar - 34.77 (January 1999), 36.299 (1998), 35.774 (1997), 30.962 (1996); note - the Luxembourg franc is at par with the Belgian franc, which circulates freely in Luxembourg | Guernsey pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Guernsey pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Grand Duke HENRI (since 7 October 2000); Heir Apparent Prince GUILLAUME (son of the monarch, born 11 November 1981); head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Claude JUNCKER (since 1 January 1995) and Vice Prime Minister Lydie POLFER (since 7 August 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and vice prime minister appointed by the monarch, following popular election to the Chamber of Deputies; they are responsible to the Chamber of Deputies note: government coalition - CSV and DP |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief Lt. Gen. Sir John FOLEY (since NA 2000) and Bailiff de Vic Graham CAREY (since NA 1999) cabinet: Advisory and Finance Committee appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; bailiff appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $7.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $NA |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, steel products, chemicals, rubber products, glass | tomatoes, flowers and ferns, sweet peppers, eggplant, other vegetables |
Exports - partners | EU 75% (Germany 25%, France 21%, Belgium 13%, UK 8%, Italy 6%, Netherlands 5%), US 4% (1999) | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and light blue; similar to the flag of the Netherlands, which uses a darker blue and is shorter; design was based on the flag of France | white with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) extending to the edges of the flag and a yellow equal-armed cross of William the Conqueror superimposed on the Saint George cross |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $15.9 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1% industry: 30% services: 69% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 3%
industry: 10% services: 87% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $36,400 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.7% (2000 est.) | 5.7% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 49 45 N, 6 10 E | 49 28 N, 2 35 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | large, deepwater harbor at Saint Peter Port |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
5,166 km paved: 5,166 km (including 118 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
total: NA km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $10 billion (c.i.f., 2000) | $NA |
Imports - commodities | minerals, metals, foodstuffs, quality consumer goods | coal, gasoline, oil, machinery and equipment |
Imports - partners | EU 81% (Belgium 35%, Germany 26%, France 12%, Netherlands 4%), US 9% (1999) | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Independence | 1839 (from the Netherlands) | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.8% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | banking, iron and steel, food processing, chemicals, metal products, engineering, tires, glass, aluminum | tourism, banking |
Infant mortality rate | 4.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 4.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.8% (2000 est.) | 3.99% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, Benelux, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NATO, NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | NA |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (including Belgium) (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | judicial courts and tribunals (3 Justices of the Peace, 2 district courts, and 1 Supreme Court of Appeals); administrative courts and tribunals (State Prosecutor's Office, administrative courts and tribunals, and the Constitutional Court); judges for all courts are appointed for life by the monarch | Royal Court |
Labor force | 248,000 (of whom 70,200 are foreign cross-border workers primarily from France, Belgium, and Germany) (2000) | 31,322 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 83.2%, industry 14.3%, agriculture 2.5% (1998 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
356 km border countries: Belgium 148 km, France 73 km, Germany 135 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
24% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 35% other: 20% |
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA% other: NA% |
Languages | Luxembourgish (national language), German (administrative language), French (administrative language) | English, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
Legal system | based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
Legislative branch | unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 13 June 1999 (next to be held by NA June 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - CSV 29.79%, DP 21.58%, LSAP 23.75%, ADR 10.36%, Green Party 9.09%, the Left 3.77%; seats by party - CSV 19, DP 15, LSAP 13, ADR 6, Green Party 5, the Left 2 note: the Council of State or Conseil d'Etat, which has 21 members who are appointed and dismissed by the Grand Duke based on proposals from the government, the Chamber of Deputies, or the Council of State, is an advisory body whose views are considered by the Chamber of Deputies |
unicameral Assembly of the States; consists of the bailiff, 10 Douzaine (parish council) representatives, 45 people's deputies elected by popular vote, 2 representatives from Alderney, Her Majesty's Procureur (Attorney General), Her Majesty's Comptroller (Solicitor General) and Her Majesty's Greffier (Court Recorder and Registrar General); note - Alderney and Sark have their own parliaments
elections: last held 12 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all independents |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
77.3 years male: 74.02 years female: 80.8 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 80.04 years
male: 77.04 years female: 83.14 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2000 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Western Europe, between France and Germany | Western Europe, islands in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Europe | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
50 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 988,450 GRT/1,313,498 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, chemical tanker 11, container 2, liquefied gas 18, passenger 4, petroleum tanker 6, roll on/roll off 7 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 4 (2000 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army; note - the government abolished the Gendarmerie | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $131 million (FY98/99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (FY98/99) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
112,714 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
92,817 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
2,565 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | National Day (Birthday of Grand Duchess Charlotte) 23 June | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | noun:
Luxembourger(s) adjective: Luxembourg |
noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander |
Natural hazards | NA | NA |
Natural resources | iron ore (no longer exploited), arable land | cropland |
Net migration rate | 9.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 48 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Action Committee for Democracy and Justice or ADR [Robert MEHLEN]; Christian Social People's Party or CSV (known also as Christian Social Party or PCS) [Erna HENNICOT-SCHOEPGES]; Democratic Party or DP [Lydie POLFER]; Green Party [Abbes JACOBY and Felix BRAS]; Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party or LSAP [Jean ASSELBORN]; Marxist and Reformed Communist Party DEI LENK (the Left) [no formal leadership]; other minor parties | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | ABBL (bankers' association); ALEBA (financial sector trade union); Centrale Paysanne (federation of agricultural producers); CEP (professional sector chamber); CGFP (trade union representing civil service); Chambre de Commerce (Chamber of Commerce); Chambre des Metiers (Chamber of Artisans); FEDIL (federation of industrialists); LCGP (center-right trade union); OGBL (center-left trade union) | none |
Population | 442,972 (July 2001 est.) | 64,818 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.26% (2001 est.) | 0.34% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mertert | Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 285,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
274 km standard gauge: 274 km 1.435-m gauge (242 km electrified; 178 km double track) (1998) |
5 km |
Religions | the greatest preponderance of the population is Roman Catholic with a very few Protestants, Jews, and Muslims
note: 1979 legislation forbids the collection of religious statistics |
Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
highly developed, completely automated and efficient system, mainly buried cables domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; buried cable international: 3 channels leased on TAT-6 coaxial submarine cable (Europe to North America) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | 314,700 (1999) | 44,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 215,741 (2000) | 12,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1999) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle flood plain in the southeast | mostly level with low hills in southwest |
Total fertility rate | 1.7 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.37 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2.7% (2000 est.) | 0.5% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 37 km (on the Moselle) | none |