Martinique (2001) | Oman (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 6 regions (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah) and 2 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam*, Zufar*; note - the US Embassy in Oman reports that Masqat is a governorate, but this has not been confirmed by the US Board of Geographic Names (BGN) |
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:
41.51% (male 554,727; female 533,627) 15-64 years: 56.12% (male 894,978; female 576,672) 65 years and over: 2.37% (male 32,863; female 29,331) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 143 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
6 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
137 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 56 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total:
212,460 sq km land: 212,460 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Kansas |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. |
Birth rate | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 37.96 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues:
$4.7 billion expenditures: $5.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $490 million (1999) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Muscat |
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; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south |
Coastline | 350 km | 2,092 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens |
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:
Sultanate of Oman conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | Omani rial (OMR) |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.1 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $4.5 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador John B. CRAIG embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: international: P. O. Box 202, Code No. 115, Medinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 698989 FAX: [968] 699189 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Abdallah bin Muhammad bin Aqil al-DHAHAB chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
Disputes - international | none | boundary with the UAE has not been bilaterally defined; northern section in the Musandam Peninsula is an administrative boundary |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | $76.4 million (1995) |
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. | Oman's economic performance improved significantly in 2000 due largely to the upturn in oil prices. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in November 2000. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) | 8.026 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 8.63 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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:
Arabian Sea 0 m highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling 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% | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African |
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) | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (fixed rate since 1986) |
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:
Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) | $11.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | Japan 27%, China 12%, Thailand 18%, UAE 12%, South Korea 12%, US (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered at the top of the vertical band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $19.6 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture:
3% industry: 40% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 4.6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 21 00 N, 57 00 E |
Geography - note | - | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total:
32,800 km paved: 9,840 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,960 km (1996) |
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) | $4.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | UAE 26% (largely reexports), Japan 16%, UK 9%, Italy 7%, Germany 6%, US (1999) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper |
Infant mortality rate | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 22.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | -0.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | 580 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has non-Islamic judges as well as traditional Islamic judges |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) | 850,000 (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
1,374 km border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 0% other: 95% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects |
Legal system | French legal system | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; 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 |
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (48 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by limited suffrage, however, the monarch makes final selections and can negate election results; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held NA September 2000 (next to be held NA September 2003) election results: NA; note - two women were elected for the first time to Majlis al-Shura, about 100,000 people voted |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
72.04 years male: 69.9 years female: 74.29 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: approaching 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 18,167 GRT/11,307 DWT ships by type: cargo 2, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary (includes Royal Oman Police) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $2.4 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 13% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
771,919 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
429,811 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 14 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
26,469 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) |
Nationality | noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
noun:
Omani(s) adjective: Omani |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas |
Net migration rate | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,300 km; natural gas 1,030 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 |
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] | none |
Population | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) | 2,622,198
note: includes 527,078 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 3.43% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | 1.4 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu |
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:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.55 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female total population: 1.3 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | in Oman's most recent elections in 2000, limited to approximately 175,000 Omanis chosen by the government to vote in elections for the Majlis ash-Shura |
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:
modern system consisting of open wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable domestic: open wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 201,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 59,822 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | NA% |
Waterways | none | none |