Martinique (2001) | Saudi Arabia (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 13 provinces (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah); Al Bahah, Al Hudud ash Shamaliyah, Al Jawf, Al Madinah, Al Qasim, Ar Riyad, Ash Sharqiyah (Eastern Province), 'Asir, Ha'il, Jizan, Makkah, Najran, Tabuk |
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: 38.2% (male 5,149,960/female 4,952,138)
15-64 years: 59.4% (male 8,992,348/female 6,698,633) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 334,694/female 289,826) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | wheat, barley, tomatoes, melons, dates, citrus; mutton, chickens, eggs, milk |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 201 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 72
over 3,047 m: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 129
over 3047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 72 914 to 1,523 m: 39 under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total: 1,960,582 sq km
land: 1,960,582 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than one-fifth the size of the US |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | In 1902, ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman Al Saud captured Riyadh and set out on a 30-year campaign to unify the Arabian Peninsula. A son of ABD AL-AZIZ rules the country today, and the country's Basic Law stipulates that the throne shall remain in the hands of the aging sons and grandsons of the kingdom's founder. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. The continuing presence of foreign troops on Saudi soil after Operation Desert Storm remained a source of tension between the royal family and the public until the US military's near-complete withdrawal to neighboring Qatar in 2003. The first major terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia in several years, which occurred in May and November 2003, prompted renewed efforts on the part of the Saudi government to counter domestic terrorism and extremism, which also coincided with a slight upsurge in media freedom and announcement of government plans to phase in partial political representation. A burgeoning population, aquifer depletion, and an economy largely dependent on petroleum output and prices are all ongoing governmental concerns. |
Birth rate | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 29.56 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues: $104.8 billion
expenditures: $78.66 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Riyadh |
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 | harsh, dry desert with great temperature extremes |
Coastline | 350 km | 2,640 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | governed according to Shari'a (Islamic law); the Basic Law that articulates the government's rights and responsibilities was introduced in 1993 |
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: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
conventional short form: Saudi Arabia local long form: Al Mamlakah al Arabiyah as Suudiyah local short form: Al Arabiyah as Suudiyah |
Currency | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | - |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.62 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $34.35 billion (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador James Curtis OBERWETTER
embassy: Collector Road M, Diplomatic Quarter, Riyadh mailing address: American Embassy Riyadh, Unit 61307, APO AE 09803-1307; International Mail: P. O. Box 94309, Riyadh 11693 telephone: [966] (1) 488-3800 FAX: [966] (1) 488-3989 consulate(s) general: Dhahran, Jiddah (Jeddah) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | chief of mission: Ambassador Turki al-Faysal bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud
chancery: 601 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 342-3800 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | despite resistance from nomadic groups, the demarcation of the Saudi Arabia-Yemen boundary established under the 2000 Jeddah Treaty is almost complete; Yemen protests Saudi erection of a concrete-filled pipe as a security barrier in 2004 to stem illegal cross-border activities in sections of the boundary; Kuwait and Saudi Arabia continue discussions on a maritime boundary with Iran; because the treaties have not been made public, the exact alignment of the boundary with the UAE is still unknown |
Economic aid - donor | - | pledged $100 million in 1993 to fund reconstruction of Lebanon; since 2000, Saudi Arabia has committed $307 million for assistance to the Palestinians; pledged $240 million to development in Afghanistan; pledged $1 billion in export guarantees and soft loans to Iraq |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | - |
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. | This is an oil-based economy with strong government controls over major economic activities. Saudi Arabia possesses 25% of the world's proven petroleum reserves, ranks as the largest exporter of petroleum, and plays a leading role in OPEC. The petroleum sector accounts for roughly 75% of budget revenues, 45% of GDP, and 90% of export earnings. About 40% of GDP comes from the private sector. Roughly five and a half million foreign workers play an important role in the Saudi economy, for example, in the oil and service sectors. The government in 1999 announced plans to begin privatizing the electricity companies, which follows the ongoing privatization of the telecommunications company. The government is encouraging private sector growth to lessen the kingdom's dependence on oil and increase employment opportunities for the swelling Saudi population. Priorities for government spending in the short term include additional funds for education and for the water and sewage systems. Economic reforms proceed cautiously because of deep-rooted political and social conservatism. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) | 128.5 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 138.2 billion kWh (2002) |
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: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal Sawda' 3,133 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | desertification; depletion of underground water resources; the lack of perennial rivers or permanent water bodies has prompted the development of extensive seawater desalination facilities; coastal pollution from oil spills |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
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 90%, Afro-Asian 10% |
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) | Saudi riyals per US dollar - 3.745 (2004), 3.745 (2003), 3.745 (2002), 3.745 (2001), 3.745 (2000) |
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: King and Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since 1 August 2005); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SULTAN bin Abd al- Aziz Al Saud (half brother of the monarch, born 5 January 1928) note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: King and Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud (since 1 August 2005); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SULTAN bin Abd al- Aziz Al Saud (half brother of the monarch, born 5 January 1928) note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers is appointed by the monarch and includes many royal family members elections: note - in October 2003, Council of Ministers announced its intent to introduce elections for half of the members of local and provincial assemblies and a third of the members of the national Consultative Council or Majlis al-Shura, incrementally over a period of four to five years; in November 2004, the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs initiated voter registration for partial municipal council elections scheduled nationwide for February through April 2005 |
Exports | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) | 7.92 million bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | petroleum and petroleum products 90% |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | US 18.2%, Japan 14.9%, South Korea 9.5%, China 6.1%, Taiwan 4.5%, Singapore 4.1% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 March - 28 February |
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 | green, a traditional color in Islamic flags, with the Shahada or Muslim creed in large white Arabic script (translated as "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God") above a white horizontal saber (the tip points to the hoist side); design dates to the early twentieth century and is closely associated with the Al Saud family which established the kingdom in 1932 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 4.2%
industry: 67.2% services: 28.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12,000 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 25 00 N, 45 00 E |
Geography - note | - | extensive coastlines on Persian Gulf and Red Sea provide great leverage on shipping (especially crude oil) through Persian Gulf and Suez Canal |
Heliports | - | 5 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 152,044 km
paved: 45,461 km unpaved: 106,583 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 | death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin, cocaine, and hashish; not a major money-laundering center, improving anti-money-laundering legislation |
Imports | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) | 0 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, motor vehicles, textiles |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | US 15.3%, Japan 9.8%, Germany 8.1%, China 6.6%, UK 5.7% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 23 September 1932 (unification of the kingdom) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2.8% (2004 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | crude oil production, petroleum refining, basic petrochemicals, ammonia, industrial gases, sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), cement, construction, fertilizer, plastics, commercial ship repair, commercial aircraft repair |
Infant mortality rate | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 13.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 0.8% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, BIS, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | 16,200 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Council of Justice |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) | 6.62 million
note: more than 35% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | agriculture 12%, industry 25%, services 63% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,431 km
border countries: Iraq 814 km, Jordan 744 km, Kuwait 222 km, Oman 676 km, Qatar 60 km, UAE 457 km, Yemen 1,458 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 1.67%
permanent crops: 0.09% other: 98.24% (2001) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic |
Legal system | French legal system | based on Islamic law, several secular codes have been introduced; commercial disputes handled by special committees; 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 |
Consultative Council or Majlis al-Shura (120 members and a chairman appointed by the monarch for four-year terms) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.46 years
male: 73.46 years female: 77.55 years (2005 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: 78.8% male: 84.7% female: 70.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, north of Yemen |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 18 nm continental shelf: not specified |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 64 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,306,706 GRT/1,963,191 DWT
by type: cargo 5, chemical tanker 12, container 4, passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 23, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 9 foreign-owned: 14 (Egypt 2, Hong Kong 1, Kuwait 5, Singapore 1, Sudan 1, UAE 1, United Kingdom 3) registered in other countries: 54 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | Land Force (Army), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, National Guard, Ministry of Interior Forces (paramilitary) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $18 billion (2002) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 10% (2002) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Unification of the Kingdom, 23 September (1932) |
Nationality | noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
noun: Saudi(s)
adjective: Saudi or Saudi Arabian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | frequent sand and dust storms |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper |
Net migration rate | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -3.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 212 km; gas 1,780 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,191 km; oil 5,068 km; refined products 1,162 km (2004) |
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.) | 26,417,599
note: includes 5,576,076 non-nationals (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 2.31% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Ad Dammam, Al Jubayl, Jiddah, Yanbu' al Sinaiyah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 43, FM 31, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 1,392 km
standard gauge: 1,392 km 1.435-m gauge (with branch lines and sidings) (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | Muslim 100% |
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: 1.34 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.16 male(s)/female total population: 1.21 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | adult male citizens age 21 or older
note: voter registration began in November 2004 for partial municipal council elections scheduled nationwide for February through April 2005 |
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
domestic: extensive microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and fiber-optic cable systems international: country code - 966; microwave radio relay to Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, and Sudan; coaxial cable to Kuwait and Jordan; submarine cable to Djibouti, Egypt and Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (3 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 3,502,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 7,238,200 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 117 (1997) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly uninhabited, sandy desert |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.05 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 25% (unofficial estimate) (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |