Martinique (2001) | Kuwait (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 28.3% (male 304,200; female 292,900)
15-64 years: 69.2% (male 934,115; female 527,331) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 34,106; female 18,909) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | practically no crops; fish |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 7 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 17,820 sq km
land: 17,820 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for the ruling Kuwaiti AL-SABAH dynasty from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq on 2 August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led UN coalition began a ground assault on 23 February 1991 that completely liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91. |
Birth rate | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.84 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $11.5 billion
expenditures: $17.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY01/02 ) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Kuwait |
Climate | 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 | dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters |
Coastline | 350 km | 499 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | approved and promulgated 11 November 1962 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Department of Martinique conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
conventional long form: State of Kuwait
conventional short form: Kuwait local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt local short form: Al Kuwayt |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | Kuwaiti dinar (KD) |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.46 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $6.9 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard H. JONES
embassy: Bayan, Area 14, Al-Masjed Al-Aqsa Street (near the Bayan palace), Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat, 13001 Safat, Kuwait Unit 69000, APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 539-5307, ext. 2240 FAX: [965] 538-0282 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al Jaber AL SABAH
chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0517 |
Disputes - international | none | in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993); this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands, although the Iraqi Government continues periodic rhetorical challenges |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | NA |
Economy - overview | 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. | Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 90% of export revenues, and 75% of government income. Kuwait's climate limits agricultural development. Consequently, with the exception of fish, it depends almost wholly on food imports. About 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported. Higher oil prices put the FY99/00 budget into a $2 billion surplus. The FY00/01 budget covers only nine months because of a change in the fiscal year. The budget for FY01/02 envisioned higher expenditures for salaries, construction, and other general categories. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) | 29.016 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 31.2 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 306 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | limited natural fresh water resources; some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7% |
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) | Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.3075 (January 2002), 0.3066, (2001), 0.3067 (2000), 0.3044 (1999), 0.3047 (1998), 0.3033 (1997) |
Executive branch | 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 |
chief of state: Amir JABIR al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 31 December 1977)
head of government: Prime Minister and Crown Prince SAAD al-Abdallah al-Salim Al Sabah (since 8 February 1978); First Deputy Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 17 October 1992); Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamud Al Sabah (since NA) and MUHAMMAD KHALID al-Hamed Al Sabah (since NA) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) | $16.2 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | oil and refined products, fertilizers |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | Japan 23%, US 14%, South Korea 13%, Singapore 7%, Netherlands 6%, Pakistan 6%, Indonesia 4%, UK 2% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | 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 | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $30.9 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
industry: 60%
services: 40% agriculture: 0% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,100 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 29 30 N, 45 45 E |
Geography - note | - | strategic location at head of Persian Gulf |
Heliports | - | 3 (2002) |
Highways | total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 4,450 km
paved: 3,590 km unpaved: 860 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 cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) | $7.4 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | US 12%, Japan 8%, UK 8%, Germany 7%, China 5%, France 4%, Australia 3%, Netherlands 2% (2000) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 19 June 1961 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1% (1997 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | petroleum, petrochemicals, desalination, food processing, construction materials |
Infant mortality rate | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 10.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 2.7% (2001) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | 60 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | High Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) | 1.3 million
note: 68% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 462 km
border countries: Iraq 240 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.34%
permanent crops: 0.06% other: 99.6% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic (official), English widely spoken |
Legal system | French legal system | civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | 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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 3 July 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 50; note - all cabinet ministers are also ex officio members of the National Assembly |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 76.46 years
male: 75.56 years female: 77.39 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 78.6% male: 82.2% female: 74.9% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 38 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,274,515 GRT/3,627,835 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, container 6, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 19 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Monaco 1, Saudi Arabia 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Army, Navy, Air Force (including Air Defense Force), National Police Force, National Guard, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1,967.3 million (FY01)
note: Kuwait is changing its fiscal year; the above figure is for July-March 2001; future budget years will be April-March annually |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 5.5% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 812,059 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 486,906 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 18,309 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | National Day, 25 February (1950) |
Nationality | noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Kuwaiti(s)
adjective: Kuwaiti |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April; they bring heavy rain which can damage roads and houses; sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year, but are most common between March and August |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas |
Net migration rate | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 877 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 165 km |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | none; formation of political parties is illegal |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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] | several political groups act as de facto parties: Bedouins, merchants, Sunni and Shi'a activists, and secular leftists and nationalists |
Population | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) | 2,111,561
note: includes 1,159,913 non-nationals (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 3.33%
note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Kuwait, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | 1.175 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Muslim 85% (Sunni 70%, Shi'a 30%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15% |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.77 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.52 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | adult males who have been naturalized for 30 years or more or have resided in Kuwait since before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21
note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote; in 1996, naturalized citizens who do not meet the pre-1920 qualification but have been naturalized for 30 years were eligible to vote for the first time |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: the quality of service is excellent
domestic: new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers; trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, open wire, and fiber-optic cable; a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones international: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 412,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 210,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | flat to slightly undulating desert plain |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.14 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 1.8% (1996 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |