Martinique (2001) | Mauritius (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 9 districts and 3 dependencies*; Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals*, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues*, Savanne |
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: 24.8% (male 152,424; female 149,908)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 418,836; female 420,411) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 31,104; female 47,798) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 5 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 2,040 sq km
land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community. |
Birth rate | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.85 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $1.122 billion
expenditures: $1.461 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Port Louis |
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 | tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May) |
Coastline | 350 km | 177 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992 |
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: Republic of Mauritius
conventional short form: Mauritius |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | Mauritian rupee (MUR) |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.82 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $1.75 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador John PRICE
embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH
chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983 |
Disputes - international | none | Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation in 2001; claims French-administered Tromelin Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | $42 million (1997) |
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. | Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on expanding local financial institutions and building a domestic information telecommunications industry. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector and responsible fiscal management, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). |
Electricity - consumption | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) | 1.219 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 1.311 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Piton 828 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | water pollution, degradation of coral reefs |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2% |
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) | Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.9015 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.1293 (2001), 26.2496 (2000), 25.1858 (1999) |
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: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President Abdool Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA; note - Karl OFFMANN stepped down on 30 September 2003 |
Exports | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | UK 31%, France 21.3%, US 17.6%, Madagascar 6.3% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $13.85 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 30.3% services: 63.6% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4.1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 20 17 S, 57 33 E |
Geography - note | - | the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs |
Highways | total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 1,926 km
paved: 1,868 km (including 44 km of expressways) unpaved: 58 km (2000) |
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 | minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry |
Imports | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | South Africa 12.1%, France 12%, China 8.4%, India 8.2% (2003) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 12 March 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 8% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 15.57 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 4.2% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | 200 sq km (2000 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) | 560,000 (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture and fishing 14%, construction and industry 36%, transportation and communication 7%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, finance 3%, other services 24% (1995) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 49.26%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | English (official), Creole, French (official), Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bhojpuri |
Legal system | French legal system | based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas |
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 (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held NA September 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.09 years
male: 68.11 years female: 76.13 years (2004 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: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Political Map of the World |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 22,946 GRT/27,102 DWT
by type: cargo 1, combination bulk 4, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: Belgium 1, India 4, Switzerland 2 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $11.2 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.2% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 342,482 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 172,157 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 12 March (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Mauritian(s)
adjective: Mauritian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | arable land, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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] | Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR] |
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] | various labor unions |
Population | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) | 1,220,481 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 10% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 0.81% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Port Louis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Hindu 52%, Christian 28.3% (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant 2.3%), Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1% |
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: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: small system with good service
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 348,200 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 462,400 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 2 (plus several repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.97 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 9.8% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |