Marshall Islands (2001) | Martinique (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
49.29% (male 17,808; female 17,101) 15-64 years: 48.61% (male 17,573; female 16,853) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 707; female 780) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
23.1% (male 49,016; female 47,653) 15-64 years: 66.77% (male 139,106; female 140,291) 65 years and over: 10.13% (male 18,893; female 23,495) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
Airports | 16 (2000 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
12 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
181.3 sq km land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein |
total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the islands between 1947 and 1962. | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. |
Birth rate | 45.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$80.1 million expenditures: $77.4 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (FY95/96 est.) |
revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
Capital | Majuro | Fort-de-France |
Climate | wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid |
Coastline | 370.4 km | 350 km |
Constitution | 1 May 1979 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
conventional long form:
Department of Martinique conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 6.23 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $125 million (FY96/97 est.) | $180 million (1994) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joan M. PLAISTED embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | claims US territory of Wake Island | none |
Economic aid - recipient | approximately $65 million annually from the US | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France |
Economy - overview | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US provides roughly $65 million in annual aid. Negotiations were underway in 1999 for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, and the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties caused GDP to fall in 1996-98. | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration. |
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:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
- |
Ethnic groups | Micronesian | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | 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) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Jean-Francois CORDET (since NA) head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) 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 |
Exports | $28 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | fish, coconut oil, trochus shells | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples |
Exports - partners | US, Japan, Australia | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $105 million (1998 est.), supplemented by approximately $65 million annual US aid | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 13% services: 72% (1995) |
agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,670 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -5% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 9 00 N, 168 00 E | 14 40 N, 61 00 W |
Geography - note | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range | - |
Highways | total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks |
total:
2,105 km (2000) 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% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
Imports | $58 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Guam, Singapore | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) |
Independence | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls, offshore banking (embryonic) | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 39.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (1997) | 3.9% (1990) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 40 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | NA | 170,000 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 60% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 40% |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (universally spoken and is the official language), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese | French, Creole patois |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1998 (next to be held September 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
65.84 years male: 64.04 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 100% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,768,406 GRT/16,242,699 DWT ships by type: bulk 63, cargo 9, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 29, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 87, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1, US 6 (2000 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | no regular military forces (a coast guard may be established); Police Force | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Marshallese (singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese |
noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) |
Natural resources | phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] | Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF (replaced by Martinique Forces of Progress) [Jean MAREN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Association for the Protection of Martinique's Heritage (ecologist) [Garcin MALSA]; Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES] |
Population | 70,822 (July 2001 est.) | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.88% (2001 est.) | 0.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Majuro | Fort-de-France, La Trinite |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | NA | 82,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Christian (mostly Protestant) | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telex services domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein |
general assessment:
domestic facilities are adequate domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,000 (1996) | 170,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 365 (1996) | 15,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (of which two are US military stations) (1997) | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | low coral limestone and sand islands | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano |
Total fertility rate | 6.55 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1991 est.) | 27.2% (1998) |
Waterways | none | none |